New Delhi: Gujjars on Thursday blocked road and rail traffic in the capital and adjoining areas as part of their ‘NCR rasta roko’ agitation even as over 35,000 policemen fanned out across the National Capital Region to prevent any untoward incident.
All highways leading to the national capital have been blocked. At Aya Nagar on the Delhi-Gurgaon Mehrauli road, police fired tear gas shells on the protesters. There are also reports of stone pelting and effigies burning. At places the agitators broke windshields of cars and buses. Protesters turned away vehicles from Noida and Gurgaon, home to scores of outsourcing and computer software firms. Many offices were also closed.
The NCR agitation, called by the All India Gujjar Mahasabha, is in support of the community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe status in Rajasthan where 39 people were killed last week in clashes between the police and protesters.