Dhangar reservation protesters vandalise Jalna collector’s office
After the incident, police beefed up security in Jalna, especially outside government offices. State Reserve Police Force teams were also deployed.
In September, a Maratha reservation protest turned violent at Ambad in the district. (ANI Photo) A protest by Dhangar community members demanding Scheduled Tribe reservation turned violent Tuesday evening in Jalna district as some of the protesters vandalised the district collector’s office after officials refused to accept their memorandum.
The Dhangar community held statewide protests Tuesday, as a part of which community members visited the collector’s office in every district and submitted memorandums seeking reservation under the Schedule Tribe quota.
After the incident, police beefed up security in Jalna, especially outside government offices. State Reserve Police Force teams were also deployed.
The angry protesters pelted stones on the collector office damaging properties and also several vehicles parked in the premises.
Asked about the incident, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said he was not aware of it.
Meanwhile, MLC and Dhangar community leader Gopichand Padalkar said, “Yesterday Jalna collector had agreed to come outside the office to receive the memorandum. Accordingly, the community members went to the district collector office. After the planned protest, the protesters informed the collector’s office to send someone to receive the memorandum. However no one came despite waiting for an hour. Due to this, the community members were outraged. I appeal to the community members to not take the law in the hands and not indulge in violence of any kind.”
He also urged the administration to not take any action against the protesters and said that if needed he will visit Jalna and speak to the district collector and superintendent of police.
Speaking about the incident, a protester said, “We had met collector on Monday and urged him to come down to receive the memorandum since there would be huge crowd and it would not be good to come upstairs with so many people. He had agreed upon it but when we went there and after staging protest, and checked with the officials, they said no one can come down since its against the protocol.”
“Where was this protocol when ministers, district collectors and SP were going to Antarwali Sarati village(where Maratha activist Manoj Jarange Patil was sitting on hunger strike)? The government should not take us lightly. If they take us lightly then they will have to pay heavy price for it…” the protester added.
This is the second violent incident related to reservation in Jalna in the past three months. In September, a Maratha reservation protest turned violent at Ambad in the district.
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