PRIME Minister Narender Modi had come to Jind to attend an election rally during Haryana assembly elections in 2014. Taking cognizance of his opening remark, the CPI(M) had forewarned  the people about the impending consequences of his intent.  He had said, “I bow to this pious land of khaps.” Those not aware of the character and record of RSS perhaps felt fascinated by this praise and glorification of the state.

This remark of Modi was actually the essence of the script of the havoc which the world is witnessing today and lakhs of people are going through in which more than 30 people have lost their lives. Schools, colleges, shops, malls, hospitals, automobile showrooms, hotels, government offices, banks etc in several  districts including Rohtak, Sonipat and Jhajjar have witnessed heavy devastation. What is more disturbing is the fact that  at least 10 of the total deceased persons have lost their lives not in the firing by security forces but were killed as a result of aggressive caste violence. Reports of barbaric crime like rapes of stranded women commuters have come from a site of road blockage on NH-1 near Murthal in Sonipat. All efforts are being made by the state and its agencies to suppress these incidents only to indicate the occurrence. The larger tragedy however is that the caste divide has deepened in the state and further escalated with the casteist and communal forces becoming hyperactive in the aftermath of violence. Caste obsession and mutual hostilities have reached such levels that not only the shops and establishments have been branded with caste identities rather even the dead bodies are alas treated as per their caste affiliations.

The agitation for Jat reservation has not come out of the blue. The activities regarding this reservation started in 2008-09 during the Bhupender Singh Hooda government of the Congress party. This was mainly led by self-styled khap leaders and other individuals. At that time, limited areas of Hisar and Jind districts were affected by the agitation but this time round almost the entire state and NCR has come into its fold.

The normalcy that is being claimed, after a full week of devastation may well prove to be too illusory in view of open threats and counter threats aired in the polarised scenario.  There is widespread mutual distrust, suspicion, and insecurity. Seeing the torched schools and school buses, the children are dumb stuck. People feel unsafe in their homes as rumours are doing the rounds.

The traffic at national and state highways and link roads at over 500 points had been stopped by erecting permanent blockades. The law enforcing agencies did not take the least measures to stop the blockades, rather facilitated it for reasons obviously known to the state government. These were finally removed only at the wishes of those who had put up these. It seemed as if the police and administration had gone on leave for full one week. Police had left the police stations. This is the same police force of Khattar which last year had resorted to lathi charge, tear gas shelling and has framed thousands of cases against various sections who were taking out precessions. Nursing students and leaders of SFI were lathi charged when they wanted to take out a procession to submit their memorandum at the camp office of the chief minister at Karnal.

Thus genuine questions on the total passivity of the government are being raised. The answers have been sought from the government in the national and vernacular media. It is being asked why the government went into oblivion after failure of the talks in Chandigarh with the so-called Jat leaders on February 17. Can the government escape from its monumental failure? The government had tried to shirk its responsibility by appointing a commission to inquire into the “lapses” on the part of police officials. In addition, they have started accusing the opposition for a conspiracy to dislodge the government. Though it is too ridiculous but it is in tune with such a statement of the prime minister in which he has recently accused the opposition of destabilising his government by defaming him.

The background in which these entire happenings have taken place needs to be understood. The context of reservation being demanded by the peasant communities do have its own reasons notwithstanding the situation being exploited by the forces of identity politics. Owing to the neoliberal policies pursued during recent decades, agriculture crisis has been accentuating. Basic necessities like education and employment are being denied to the masses. Instead of forming widest possible unity for a comprehensive struggle to change the policies responsible for the pathetic conditions of peasantry, some reactionary forces are busy in pandering to the parochial caste and communal passions in order to divert the anger. Reservation on caste basis is being used as a tool in this politicking. We must not forget that the present controversy on the reservation is being created at such a time when the RSS supremo Mohan Bhagwat has opined to do away with reservations itself. Demands for reservations are being propagated in such a manner as if the reservation provided to certain communities is responsible for the unemployment in other communities. Again, such an impression is also being built that reservation to a specific community is the guarantee for admissions to institutions of choice and guarantee to subsequent employment for all the youth.

One major fact is being totally concealed in this context. If we compare the number of government and quasi government jobs in Haryana in 1982 and 2004, we come to know that 2 lakh 91 thousand jobs have been scrapped. On the other hand, because of privatisation of education, the profit mongering capitalists are looting the hard earned resources of the parents. Have the ‘caste messiahs’ of reservation, ever opposed the policies and politics that are responsible for privatisation of education and mongering departments?

There is no doubt that the condition of poor sections of especially peasantry, is not only bad but continues to deteriorate with every passing day. Rationale of reservation for more poorer among them can be understood.  So the legality of making provisions for reservation to the economically more weaker sections of Jats and other communities can be looked into; especially its feasibility in the light of the Supreme Court cap of a maximum of 50 percent reservation. Ignoring these aspects, Bhupender Hooda government of the Congress had provided reservation to Jats and some other communities which was stayed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Similarly, the decision of Manmohan Singh government at the centre to include Jat community in the list of OBCs just before the Lok Sabha elections was set aside by the Supreme Court.

In this background of assuming power at the centre and aspiring to form its own government for the first time in Haryana, the BJP had made tall promises including reservation for Jats. By encouraging large scale defection of Jat and non Jat leaders from the Congress party, the BJP was able to muster majority in the assembly elections but it could manage only 33 percent of votes in the state. To misguide and detract the anger of the masses resulting from pro-corporate policies, the BJP resorted to the same tactics throughout the country including Haryana, against which the Left parties had warned the people before elections. This was the tactics of creating divisions among the masses on caste and religion on the one hand and resorting to ruthless repression of the voice of dissent, on the other. Repression of students of FTII, ban on the Ambedkar Study Circle in IIT Madras, happenings in Hyderabad Central University which claimed the life of  Rohith Vemula and then the shameful episode of ruthless repression on progressive Left movement in JNU. The happenings of Haryana need to be viewed as part of the bigger sinister design by which all the individuals, parties and organisations are branded anti-nationals. This must not be forgotten that those accused of inciting communal violence in Muzaffarnagar by instigating the Jat community just before the parliamentary elections have been awarded ministerial berths in the BJP government. For Jat reservation also, the BJP is projecting these leaders from UP only. Sanjeev Balyan is prominent among them. BJP is eyeing the forthcoming UP elections when it chose Sanjeev Balyan to announce to the media the acceptance of demand for Jat reservation in the negotiations of Jat leaders with the union home minister.

Haryana has a nominal population of Muslims and that too is concentrated in Mewat district. Thus the politics of cow and derogatory anti-Muslim statement of the chief minister could not succeed beyond a point in effecting communal polarisation in the state. On the other hand, agitations of peasantry and workers were acting as stumbling blocks in the communal divide project. So the BJP could expand its base only through caste polarisation. For this, the BJP leaders were encouraged to arouse narrow caste sentiments, the dangerous  plank of raising ‘OBC brigades’ as spearheaded by BJP MP Raj Kumar Saini throughout the state. Similarly, equally provocative conduct of Jat MPs and ministers too was on public display. Owing to the bankrupt and opportunist politics of opposition parties like the Congress and the INLD, their leaders too were found divided on caste lines. The game of caste polarisation is still continuing by raising slogans like 35 castes versus one caste etc, aiming at diverting the anger against failure of the BJP government towards a particular community in which the elements belonging to RSS are reported to be specially active.

The forces who are propagating Hinduism as a pre-requisite to be a nationalist have brought Haryana to a bizarre point where citizens as citizens are difficult to be found. All are being tied with one or the other caste as their foremost identity.

Let it be recalled here that the initiation of violence was typically triggered by spreading rumors and half truths pertaining to alleged attacks on dharmashalas belonging to particular castes and the statues of personalities revered and known to be caste icons. It is an irony that even Rao Tula Ram, a well known martyr of 1857, is identified with Ahirs, Ch. Chhotu Ram with Jats and even Sardar Patel with the Gujjar caste. Let it be known that all cities and towns have dharmashalas belonging to various specific communities for which prime lands had been made available by successive governments in the past. These centres of caste identities are often dominated by neo-rich sections of the respective communities. Their hegemony and backward politics continues to thrive and institutionalise through these centers importantly.

It is to be noted that the violent incidents took place in the background of successful agitation of farmers and agriculture workers involving five districts of Hisar division. Thousands were taking part in an indefinite sit-in at Mini Secretariat, Hisar on the burning issues like compensation for damaged crops, MNREGA, problem of stray cattle etc. Similarly a massive rally on the issue of employment was to be held at Jind on February 28 jointly by various mass and class organisations. These important initiatives have definitely received a setback. Besides all this, an anti-people budget has also been imposed having virtually nothing for ordinary people. This has totally ignored the deepening agricultural crisis and suicides by farmers. Salaried employees too have been hit hard. Price rise and unemployment have been totally neglected. These will have to be fought against.

The Party state committee in its emergency meeting held on February 28 appreciated the initiatives taken by mass organisations, social organisations and progressive individuals towards restoration of peace and social amity in violence hit areas. Party leaders visited affected places, met the victims and addressed Party workers and sympathisers over the urgent tasks of going to the people and urging them to remain vigilant against any fresh outbreak of trouble by vested interests.

In the presence of Nilotpal Basu, the state committee finalised certain immediate tasks. The Party has demanded adequate compensation for the victims of loot, destruction and arson. In addition, interests of those working in these shops, schools, institutions, malls etc who have lost their jobs should not be ignored while giving compensation. The Party has demanded large scale employment under NREGA and food security by strengthening the PDS to the poor. It is to be underlined that the peasantry facing drought has not been awarded compensation as yet.

The Party has rejected the terms of reference of the Enquiry Commission constituted by the state government.  It said that instead of just inquiring the lapses on the part of a few officers and employees, all political and administrative dimensions of the whole episode and those involved in loot, destruction and arson need to be enquired impartially. For this, the Party has demanded an enquiry by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court or the Punjab and Haryana High Court.