Jaipur/Faridabad : Shoot orders have been issued against rioters in two districts of Rajasthan state hit by the violence of the Gujjar community seeking inclusion on the list of scheduled tribes.

The directives issued on Wednesday night along with prohibitory orders in Sawai Madhopur and Bharatpur districts will remain in force till June 6, a senior police officer said yesterday.

Meanwhile, four people were killed yesterday in continued violence taking the death toll to 22 in four days of riots.

Tens of thousands of people have been stranded on highways or at railway stations in the western state of Rajasthan, a popular destination for foreign tourists, due to the wave of violent protests by ethnic Gujjars.

Job and college quotas

Millions of Gujjars, spread across north and western India, want to be declared a scheduled tribe which entitles them to job and college quotas.

But Meenas, who oppose the granting of tribal status to the Gujjars fearing they will lose their own quota slice, clashed in eastern Rajasthan, officials said.

At least four people were killed when Meenas tried to break a blockade by Gujjars, the first sign of a broader caste conflict erupting. Hundreds of soldiers armed with automatic weapons have been patrolling highways and violence-hit towns. The main highway linking New Delhi to Agra, home to the Taj Mahal, has been hit by the Gujjar protests.

Caste hierarchy

The community, traditionally known for being shepherds and farmers, even took their protests to the outskirts of New Delhi, attacking police vehicles and throwing stones. In the past two decades, more castes and communities under Hinduism's ancient hierarchy have been demanding special quotas to garner government jobs and college places through affirmative action programmes.

Violence in Rajasthan spilled over yesterday to Faridabad in Haryana, forcing the police to fire in the air, and also the Indian capital.

Around 300 Gujjars gathered at Ankhir Chowk of Faridabad town bordering the national capital and shouted slogans against Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundara Raje, set a police van on fire and torched at least two Delhi Transport Corp buses.