All great/large-scale revolutions and movements lead to a churn in the society and naturally so. Though, at the same time, it is not guaranteed at the outset or during the movement that it would culminate in achieving the desired result/goal. Generally, the cause is sacrosanct and care is taken to ensure that it is not diluted by extraneous factors/issues.
Coming specifically to the recent Jat reservation movement, the cause is not only sacrosanct, but also the need of the hour. Jats have all along believed that either there should be no reservation at all or in case if there is, it ought to be given to them too. Despite having a rich history and past as a hard-working, honest and loyal race to the nation, it has somehow lagged behind in the race to reach its true potential in harnessing the opportunities available. This is more so vis-a-vis the other land-owning communities in the Jat belt who have been aided in their progress to a great extent by reservation. This demand for inclusion in OBCs has been raging (and pending approval/sanction) for a relatively long period of time. During the earlier days when the INLD was in power in Haryana, the INLD top brass felt that Jats are a proud and dominant race and do not need reservation by being tagged as a backward class. Subsequently, even the Congress govt. led by a Jat CM did mere lip service to the cause of Jat reservation for full 10 years. In fact, during the earlier Jat reservation movements, Jat agitators were shot dead by the Police on the orders of a Jat CM in the name of controlling the law and order situation. In a politically motivated move, towards the very fag end of 10-year Congress rule under a Jat CM, reservation was announced for Jats realizing very well that this reservation without any solid/firm basis of a credible research by a committee/commission, Jat reservation would not stand judicial scrutiny and crumble easily and inevitably. The Congress rule led by a Jat CM did nothing for Jat interests in the long run. Rather, it created a false feeling/perception that the govt. favours Jats over non-Jats thereby giving vested political interests fodder for further alienating non-Jats from/against Jats.
By the present Jat reservation agitation, we have shot ourselves in the foot. We went to war without preparing for it. By war here, I mean peaceful agitation for the just and reasonable cause of reservation for Jats. We jumped into it without doing our homework. We played into the hands of the political parties and Jat-haters like Raj Kumar Saini. The end result of all this is -
a. false promise of reservation
b. bad name to the Jats
c. future discrimination against Jats socially, economically and in terms of employment (especially in the private sector)
d. false criminal cases Jats for involvement in arson, looting, rape, etc.
It will take a long-long time to wipe out the stigma of sins committed by non-Jat anti-social elements, the blame for which was both intentionally (by some vested interests) and ignorantly put on the entire Jat community.
As Bharti ji had rightly put forward in one of her posts in this thread, the need of the hour is for the community to take affirmative action. Creating self help groups within the community possibly in the areas:-
a. education - imparting quality and competitive education to the community students. A good example to emulate could be the super-30 classes of Bihar. Setting up of scholarships for the bright yet needy students from the community.
b. trade & finance - setting up farmers' cooperatives to channelise our resources and provide platforms to the farmers and small time traders from the community to access the larger markets and sources of funding.
c. legal support - any unjust and unreasonable move against the community in terms of any policy on land acquisition, restrictive laws, etc should be challenged and fought tooth and nail in the courts of law.
d. socially building bridges with other communities - Tall Jat leaders like Sir Chhotu Ram, Ch. Bansi Lal, Ch. Devi Lal, Ch. Charan Singh, etc. were leaders of the masses and had a wide support base even amongst non-Jats. We need to rebuild the bridges burnt between Jats and Non-Jats. This also involves exposing the gameplan of such hatemongers as Raj Kumar Saini and some politicians in the Congress party.
Jats are a noble race. We have set great examples in the service of the society and the nation as the hands that feed the fellow citizens and guard the borders. We can never be arsonists, looters, thugs, goons, rapists, etc. There is no other option but to reclaim our lost glory, if not for ourselves, then at least for our proud forefathers.