Protesting Jats threaten to block Delhi-Ambala rail route

Kurukshetra, Mar 21 (ANI): The Jats, who have been demanding 27 per cent reservation in Central jobs under the OBC category, on Monday threatened to block the Delhi-Ambala rail route if their demand was not met by March 25.

They also threatened to cut off the New Delhi from the rest of north India in the next phase of their stir if the demand was not fulfilled by March 28.

"If the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre did not accept their demand by March 25, Jats would lay siege to the Delhi-Ambala route," Jat leaders Santosh Dahiya and Dharmpa Chhot told reporters here.

"If the UPA government does not announce the quota for Jats by March 28, then Delhi will be cut off from the rest of North India. No water from Yamuna, no petroleum products like LPG from the Panipat Refinery and no milk and vegetables will be allowed to enter the national capital," they added.

The agitating Jats had earlier on Saturday cleared the railway tracks near Kafoorpur in Uttar Pradesh's J P Nagar District following an order from the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court.

The tracks were cleared of the agitators after 15 days of protests.

During the agitation, the Railways had to cancel the services of some 400 trains and divert as many or short-terminate about 100 trains in the Moradabad division.

Taking suo motu cognisance of the public inconvenience caused by the agitation, the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court had on Friday directed the Uttar Pradesh and Central Governments to clear the tracks as well as the national highways blocked by the protesters.

On Saturday, Jat leaders met Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram in New Delhi to find a solution to their jobs reservation demand and also for selection of students in educational institutes.

Jat leader Yashpal Malik said after the talks that the government had agreed that the community's demands were genuine, but was not ready to commit to a deadline for the solution.

"We will go back and the Jat community will take a decision. We will decide whether the agitation will continue or not," he said.

"We will respect the orders of the court, but we will also present our argument before it that if the government is not ready to resolve the issue by a deadline, then the Jat community will remain on the streets," he added. (ANI)