By IANS
Jaipur : Now the Brahmins of Rajasthan are demanding job quotas for the poor within the community.
The Rajasthan Brahmin Mahasabha, which has been spearheading a campaign for reservations in jobs, has sought an appointment with Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje to apprise her of its views.
The around seven million Brahmins in the state constitute 12.5 percent of Rajasthan's population. They plan to launch a peaceful agitation to press their demand, Mahasabha president Bhanwarlal Sharma told IANS.
"We want the government to provide reservation to the economically backward of our community," he said.
"If we do not get a favourable response, we will launch a state-wide agitation. We will follow Gandhian principles to get our demands fulfilled," he said.
He said that Mahasabha members would reach out to Brahmins in every village to involve more people in the campaign.
Sharma said Brahmins were becoming socially and economically backward. "Brahmins in Rajasthan have nothing – no jobs, no land and no means of survival. We are not doing well economically.
"The country does not need caste-based reservations. Instead, there should be reservation on the basis of economic and social conditions regardless of caste or tribe."
The state has been witnessing competition between various social groups to get the benefit of government job quotas.
The Gujjars, classified as other backward class (OBC), want tribal status. Their protests turned violent in May, leaving 26 people dead.