Jat Agitation Leaves Deep Scars in the Social Fabric of Haryana

“What is lost is lost. But the scars will take a long time to heal.”

The main victims of these riots were the villagers. (Photo: The Quint)

The riots that took place in Haryana during the Jat Reservation movement make for a black phase in state’s history. Why was the state charred with this arson? The Quint spoke to locals and the victims to find out the answers.

According to some people, these riots were triggered by a statement given by a Saini BJP MLA from Kurukshetra, in which he said that he wanted to create an army of OBC citizens whose purpose would be to drive off all the Jats from Haryana. On the other hand, some think that the Jats did not have any significant leader for their movement due to which things spiralled out of control and led to the violence.

It is still not known what led to the violence. But what cannot be denied is how badly the government and the state administration failed to contain the riots that lasted for four days.

The major victims of these riots were the villages. Neither the government nor the media came to their aid. Post the riots, the villagers are clueless about whether they will receive compensation.

Contrary to the cities, the properties that were burned in the villages did not have proper documentation or insurance. The farmers are the real victims of this situation. Despite this, when we talked to the villagers, they said, “What is lost is lost. But the scars on the social structure of the villages of Haryana will take a long time to heal.”