Gujjar women block key routes, disrupting train services

Jaipur, June 03: Protesting Gujjar women have been blocking the Jaipur-Delhi and Jaipur-Agra rail routes since morning, stranding nearly 40,000 train passengers.

More than 50 trains on that route have been cancelled and this stand-off could continue for the next 24 hours.

Railway tracks at Bandikuian near Dausa, has been blocked leading to cancellation of all trains from Ahmedabad to Delhi. The Ahmedabad-Delhi rail route, which passes through Jaipur, is the main link between North India, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

The Rajasthan government is refraining from taking any action against the protesters, as there are signs of the stand-off with Gujjars winding down.

Meanwhile, Railway officials are using buses to ferry passengers, stranded on tracks, to nearby stations.

The Gujjars have been holding protests in support of their demand for Scheduled Tribe status.he protests have often turned violent and resulted in deaths of both members of the community as well as police.

Meanwhile the Gujjars will today cremate the bodies of 38 members of their community killed in police firing in Bayana, Sikandra and Sawai Madhopur.

Postmortems were conducted yesterday, indicating a possible thaw in the two-week-long stand-off between the Gujjars and the state Government.

Gujjars had prevented the authorities from carrying out postmortem on the dead and sat along railway tracks with the bodies as a symbol of their protest.

ANI