Gurjar Agitation Leader Kirori Singh Bainsla Passes Away After Prolonged Illness

Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla passed away in Jaipur on Thursday at the age of 81.

(Photo: Accessed by The Quint) 

Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla, the face of the Gurjar agitation in Rajasthan, passed away in Jaipur on Thursday, 31 March, at the age of 81.

Bainsla, who was the convener of the Gurjar Sangharsh Samiti, had been ailing for a long time, and had also tested positive for COVID-19 last year. After his health started deteriorating, he was taken from his residence in Jaipur to Manipal Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.

Several leaders paid their respects after Bainsla's death was announced by his son Vijay.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot took to Twitter to express his condolences.

"The news of the passing away of Colonel Kirori Singh Baisla ji is extremely sad. As the head of the Gurjar reservation movement, Bainsla sahib fought a long struggle for the reservation of the MBC class. If the MBC class got reservation today, then if the credit goes to any one person, then it is Colonel Baisla," the CM tweeted in Hindi.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla also expressed his condolences and said that Colonel Bainsla was a "strong leader of the social movement", adding that he "fought lifelong for social rights".

Former Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje said that Bainsla's death was a "personal loss" for her.

"He gave voice to the feelings of the lifelong society. His death is a personal loss for me. I pray to God to give place to the departed soul at the feet of the departed soul and give patience to the family members," Raje tweeted.

The Gurjar Agitation 

Bainsla was enlisted in the Rajputana Rifles of the Indian Army, and fought in the Indo-China war of 1962 and the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965. He was also taken prisoner by Pakistan during the war.

Due to his bravery, seniors in the army addressed Bainsla as 'The Rock of Gibraltar', while fellow soldiers called him the 'Indian Rambo'.

Bainsla began a stir for separate reservations for the Gurjar community after retiring from the army. The agitations on several occasions turned violent, leading to the deaths of 70 people during the stir.

The agitations also involved stopping of trains by staging dharnas on the railway tracks.

Arguing for separate representation, Bainsla had said that the Meena community in Rajasthan had been given the status of a Scheduled Tribe (ST), thus providing them with considerable representation, but the same was not done for the Gurjars.