On Tuesday, the Karni Sena, a group claiming to speak for the Rajput community, entered the third day of its agitation and declared that it would continue until and unless its 22 demands were satisfied.
One of the main demands of the Karni Sena, which started an ongoing protest in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal on Sunday, is reservation on the basis of economic factors and no arrest without a warrant in SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act cases. In order to enforce their demands, the Karni Sena members in Bhopal blocked the road from Avadhpuri to the interstate bus terminal near Jambori Maidan.
Jeevan Singh Sherpur, the leader of the Karni Sena movement in Madhya Pradesh, declared his intention to run in the state’s elections this year and made it clear that the movement’s supporters would remain in Bhopal until their demands were satisfied. Singh and four other Karni Sena members have started an ongoing fast in an effort to advance their demands.
‘The activists are demanding reservation on economic grounds so that the poor of all communities can benefit. Reservation should be given only to one generation of a family. Arrests without investigation under the SC/ST Act should be stopped, and a law should also be made to protect the interests of the general category,’ said Sherpur.
He claimed that one of the demands was to exempt food and other necessities from the Goods and Services Tax in order to reduce inflation.
‘Lakhs of people are coming from across the state as well as from Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra to Bhopal to throw weight behind the agitation of the Karni Sena. There is no response from the government yet…the government should understand why the Karni Sena members are angry and pay heed to their demands,’ said Sherpur.
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