It's hard to miss the contrast. While Hardik Patel languishes in jail on sedition charges for leading an agitation in Gujarat demanding quota for the Patels, Jat leaders of Haryana, who engaged in violence and destruction of property demanding similar reservation for their community, have not only been treated with kid gloves, but are also being rewarded by a nervous and inexperienced chief minister.
Were Hardik Patel's crimes more heinous than those by the Jat agitators in Haryana? How can those resorting to arson and loot that led to the death of 16 people and left many injured, be not dealt with severely under the law?
While opinion on whether the Jats deserve reservation is sharply divided, the fact is that a similar demand that was hurriedly accepted by the United Progressive Alliance days before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls was later struck down by the Supreme Court. Will the legislature, while re-enacting the quota law for the Jats, ensure that it withstands the top court's legal scrutiny, if challenged?
S K Choudhury Bengaluru
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