Capt to launch anti-Badal drive on Jat quota issue
Friday, 07/03/2014
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140307/punjab.htm#6
Chandigarh : President of the All-India Jat Maha Sabha and former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today announced a campaign against the Chief Minister to inform the people that the latter had "harmed" the interests of the Jats in the state by delaying a decision on including them in the Backward Class (BC) category.
Addressing a press conference here, he said owing to the delay, Jats and Sikh Jat in the state would not get reservation in government jobs. With the poll code in force, the decision could not be implemented at the Central Government level. He said the Punjab Cabinet had declared Jats as BCs only hours before the General Election was declared and the poll code enforced. This was deliberate and meant to befool the Jats.
He said had the Badal Government taken this decision early February, the Centre would have included Punjab Jats in the BC list as it had done in the case of Jats in nine other states. This would have benefited small and marginal farmers.
Amarinder Singh pointed out that other states, such as Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, had completed all formalities well in time. The Jats in these states had now become eligible for reservation under the BC category. "Parkash Singh Badal purposely delayed the matter as he feared that I or the Congress would get all the credit and benefit from it," he alleged. He clarified that only poor Jats would be entitled to reservation in government jobs and educational institutions. "The reservation is not for the creamy layer," he said.
