The Jat community is prepared for a long-drawn battle and essential supplies are likely to be affected.
New Delhi:
Taking their quota stir to the national capital, thousands of Jat community members protested at Jantar Mantar on Thursday and demanded reservations in jobs and educational institutions.
Yashpal Malik, president of the All India Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti, said that over 50 lakh Jats from 13 states will be joining the protest.
Agitators from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Punjab also asked for jobs for the families of those killed in the 2016 violent agitation, withdrawal of cases against the Jats and action against officers who were involved.
Violence during the February 2016 agitation by Jats across several districts in Haryana left 30 people dead and over 200 injured. Government and private properties were also damaged.
Talks between the state government and Jat leaders hit a roadblock as the Haryana government made it clear that it has no jurisdiction to withdraw cases being investigated by the CBI against Jat leaders over violence during the agitation last year.
"We have come here to protest against the insensitivity which the Manohar Lal Khattar government in Haryana has shown to our demands. We will march to the parliament with our demands," said Mr Malik.
He said the community was prepared for a long-drawn battle and that essential supplies are likely to be affected.
"It is for the government to come out with a solution, but the kind of attitude the Haryana government has shown, we don't feel it wants a solution. We are ready for a long-drawn battle and this march is an announcement of that," said Mr Malik.