Indian prime minister Narendra Modi appeals for calm after violent caste protests

Source: The Telegraph

Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, has appealed for peace in his home state of Gujarat after paramilitary troops were deployed and a curfew imposed to quell a violent caste protest.

An estimated half a million Patels earlier brought the main city of Ahmedabad to standstill for a rally where their firebrand young leader demanded more government jobs and college places for the Patidar caste.

But after Hardik Patel was arrested, stone-throwing protestors torched cars, buses and police stations as the rioting spread to other cities and towns. Three protesters were reported to have been shot dead in clashes with police, while several officers were injured.

The protests are rooted in the complex and highly-sensitive world of the Indian caste system and the government’s job and college quotas for disadvantaged communities. Some analysts have warned of the dangers of a “caste war” if the tensions are not eased.

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/11825257/Indian-prime-minister-Narendra-Modi-appeals-for-calm-after-violent-caste-protests.html