JOIN USTwo rounds of talks lasting nearly two hours between a Gujjar delegation and Rajasthan government emissaries -- Energy Minister Jitendra Singh and Home Minister Shanti Dhariwal -- failed to break the impasse and Gujjar leaders staged a walkout.
Gujjar leaders Roop Singh and Harprasad who participated in talks with the government told reporters that the Gehlot government "had not done any homework" despite the Gujjars deferring their agitation by 12 days and did not even take legal advice from experts.
"We will go back to Hindon to follow the instructions of Kirori Singh Bainsla who already has given an ultimatum to the government till tomorrow morning to resolve the impasse," the duo told reporters.
"The Gehlot government has no willpower to address our demands and wants to keep them hanging in balance for ever," they said.
Jitendra Singh told the media that the talks were abruptly stopped due to the "Gujjar leaders" and "we will try our best to find a solution"."A decision to provide 5 per cent quota to Gujjars and three other communities -- Banjara, Gardia Luhar and Rebari cannot be taken in five minutes. The case is pending in the (Rajasthan) High Court."
"We are trying to keep communication with Bainsla who is in Hindon," the minister said.
Earlier, Bainsla accused the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government of vacillating on the issue of 5 per cent reservation for Gujjars in jobs and threatened to intensify the agitation if their demand was not met by tomorrow morning.
"If a written agreement providing jobs for the community is not reached by tomorrow morning, the protesters will do anything including staging a march to Jaipur from Hindon," he said. The Rajasthan Gujjar Arkashan Sangarsh Samiti is on a sit-in demanding five per cent quota for the community in state government jobs.
The Gujjar delegation was brought by vehicle from Hindon's college ground where the Samiti is holding a 'padav' (sit-in) for talks at the residence of Singh late in the evening.
After over eighty-five minutes of a round of talks with the emissaries, the Gujjar delegation left, telling the media that the talks had failed as the government was not prepared to resolve the issue.Immediately, the two ministers took the members inside the room, asking them to wait for a while.Then Singh and Dhariwal rushed to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's residence to apprise him of the talks.The second round of talks did not last even thirty minutes and the delegation walked out