Violence erupts during protests for caste benefits in India

State police chief Yash Pal Singal said a protester had shot at a member of the security personnel first during the demonstrations in Rohtak district triggering the violent retaliation by police.

The administration and the police were fully alert to meet any eventuality and the government has kept all its options open to deal with the situation, Agriculture Minister Om Prakash Dhankar told reporters after the Cabinet meet.

The government called in about 2,000 troops to quash the protests, Press Trust of India reported, as TV footage showed demonstrators trying to set fire to vehicles and a house belonging to a state minister. Several trains were cancelled by Railway authorities.

The protests have disrupted road and rail traffic with the worst hit being the Rohtak-Jhajjar region, the epicentre of the protests, besides Bhiwani, Sonipat and Hisar.

Jats reservation issue: With the Jat community agitation spreading in Haryana, state authorities have blocked internet services in the affected districts.

Looting and arson continued in the town through Friday night with unruly mobs targeting malls, shops and other buildings and many of them were set on fire.

He also appealed all political parties and social bodies of the State to help in resolving the ongoing agitation.

Raj Kumar Saini, Kurukshetra MP, has threatened to “fight back” against the Jat protesters if the government fails to bring normalcy in the state by Sunday. The decision has been taken “to maintain law and order” in the district, he said.

But Jat leaders threatened to continue their protests after talks with Haryana’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state government remained inconclusive.