Gurugram: The 'Sanyukt Ahit Regiment Morcha' took out a march on Wednesday, highlighting their demand for a separate regiment for themselves in the Indian Army. The march, which stretched from Kherki Daula Toll Plaza to Hero Honda Chowk on National Highway (NH 48), saw leaders of political parties as well as people from neighboring states joining the march. With the foot march being pre-planned, heavy police deployment was observed throughout the route.
The march took place after demonstrators did not get any positive response from the Centre regarding their cause. "We have been protesting silently till now, but they (authorities) are not paying any heed to the promise made years ago. We have no choice, but to get on the roads now," said Manoj Kankrola, a member of the Morcha. As per information, the choice of the date March 23, was to align the demonstration with the nationwide commemoration of Martyrs' Day.
The foot march saw lakhs of supporters from several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan, reaching the protest site. Speaking to the media, Manoj Yadav, one of the leaders of the march, said "Jo kaum ka nahi, wo kisi kaam ka nahi (what is not of use to the community, is not of use to anything at all)", further warning that the body would intensify its protests if the government did not change its position. Significantly, the idea of a separate Ahir Regiment formation has, in the past, received the support of several MPs and MLAs.
Taking to Twitter, the Gurugram police said, traffic congestion has been reported on NH-48 near Rajiv Chowk. Our traffic officials are present on the spot to facilitate the traffic. Inconvenience caused is highly regretted. "We are managing the situation well. Owing to a diversion we did have bottlenecks at many places but we kept vehicles moving," DCP (Traffic) Ravinder Singh Tomar said.
The aforementioned list of politicians includes Union Minister of State and Gurugram MP Rao Inderjit Singh, Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Hooda, and former Minister Rao Narbir Singh. Hooda had even raised the issue in Rajya Sabha in the past.
With agency inputs
