Confusion prevailed here a day ahead of the AICC’s chintan shivir with the Rajput community alleging that the Jaipur police had arrested caste leader Lokendra Singh Kalvi while the police dismissing the community’s claim as “mere rumours”.
Mr. Kalvi, leader of the Shri Rajput Karni Sena, had warned of disrupting the chintan shivir if the state government did not accept his community’s five demands, including reservation for the community’s economically backward members.
On Thursday, Mr. Kalvi suddenly went missing with his mobile phone switched off.
“This is just a rumour, although we did arrest some youths for creating trouble ahead of the chintan shivir,” Jaipur police commissioner B.L. Soni told The Hindu .
“Mr. Kalvi has neither been arrested nor detained. Even we have been meaning to get in touch with him but his phone has been switched off,” Mr. Soni said.
However, Karni Sena spokesperson Karan Rathore maintained Mr. Kalvi had been arrested.
“At 1.30 pm, Mr. Kalvi, on his way to a meeting in Jagatpura, called me and said he was being followed by two police vehicles and would probably be arrested. After that, he went missing. He never switches his phone off. We are really worried for him,” said Mr. Rathore.
Mr. Rathore also claimed that on Thursday morning Mr. Kalvi had received a fax from AICC President Sonia Gandhi’s office promising him a meeting with Ms. Gandhi on Saturday evening.
“We are certain that he has been arrested. The police also arrested eight of our volunteers and took them to the Pratapnagar police station,” he said.
Amidst the prevailing confusion, local newspapers and TV channels also reported about Mr. Kalvi being arrested.
On Wednesday, Mr. Kalvi had threatened to sabotage the chintan shivir if his community’s five demands were not met by the state government before the chintan shivir .
