The Patel agitation, aimed at gaining a quota for the community and release of its leaders, took a violent turn in Mehsana, Gujarat where two buildings were set ablaze
and two government offices stoned. The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh took stock of the situation in the State while Chief Minister Anandiben Patel weighed the pros and cons of giving in to the Patel community. When the Jats of Haryana were given a quota, thanks to a violent agitation, it sent a clear message that numbers and violence will determine the outcome instead of levels of backwardness. The Jats of Haryana
do not qualify for a quota and yet they got one, so how is the Gujarat going to hold out against the Patels? Ideally, the government ought to set up a commission to ascertain if the Patels deserve reservation, but with violence mounting this option has been pushed to the back burner. The more pressing problem
is to resolve the issue and that can only be done by caving
in. If demands for caste-based reservation have increased, it is
also because governments have not succeeded in weeding out
the creamy layer. This exercise would not only have ensured
that reservations go to the deserving families, but also altered
the emphasis from caste to class, which is a more desirable
metric.
