Rajasthan: 2 killed in clashes during Gujjar protests

Two people were killed on Friday and six others injured in police firing and clashes during Gujjar protests in Rajasthan's Sawaimadhopur district.

The police fired after the protesters, who have been indulging in a road blockade agitation at Usali Darra, 12 kms from Sawaimadhopur since Thursday, threw stones at them, an official spokesman said.

The police first resorted to lathicharge and then lobbed teargas shells and fired rubber bullets to disperse the protesters before opening fire, he said.

The deceased were identified as Kanahyia Lal and Radhyshyam, the spokesman said.

The road connecting Sawaimadhopur with Sheopur in Madhya Pradesh had been blocked in stretches by the protesters, they said.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Shivraj Patil today reviewed the situation arising out of the Gujjar stir, at a high-level meeting in New Delhi.

The meeting come in the wake of the Gujjar agitation taking a violent turn in Rajasthan and affecting areas in neighbouring Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and the National Capital Region.

The meeting was attended by National Security Adviser M K Narayanan, Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar, Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta and senior officials from the Law and Tribal Affairs Ministries.