The Union Cabinet’s decision on Sunday, clearing reservation for the Jat community in government jobs, was welcomed by Civil Aviation Minister and Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Ajit Singh and other community leaders.
The community, mainly engaged in farming activities in nine northern States, has been demanding reservation under quota meant for Other Backward Castes. The Jat community is present in good numbers in Delhi, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan and MP.
Welcoming the Cabinet decision, Mr. Ajit Singh said the Jat community had been agitating for reservation in Central government jobs for a long time. “Now the Cabinet has cleared it, our fight has turned out to be successful and it will pave the way for uplift and economic betterment of the community,”' Mr. Singh said here. He thanked the UPA government for the step.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said Jats all over Rajasthan were already getting the benefits of reservation in Central government jobs and educational institutions. “We had demanded inclusion of Jats from Bharatpur and Dholpur in the Central OBC list. So this is a victory for us,” Ms. Raje told The Hindu .
“It’s very good that the government has cleared it [reservation for Jats],” Rajasthan Jat Mahasabha president Raja Ram Meel told The Hindu .
All India Jat Progressive Front president Naresh Kumar has also welcomed the decision.