Several protesters were detained in Delhi on Friday as thousands joined an agitation to demand that quotas in educational institutions and government jobs should be based on economic criteria rather than caste, PTI reported.

Though the police had given permission for the event to be held at Ramlila Maidan, protesters gathered at Jantar Mantar in the heart of the capital.

The police and the Rapid Action Force detained several protesters from the Jantar Mantar area for violating orders barring public gatherings.

The protesters gathered under the banner of an organisation named Reservation Hatao Andolan. Demonstrators – most of them men – held posters and saffron flags, and shouted slogans emphasising their demands.

“Our demand is that economic condition should be considered while deciding who needs government support,” PTI quoted a protester from the Akhil Bhartiya Kshatriya Mahasabha as saying. “A poor person, irrespective of caste, should be provided assistance for education, coaching and other needs.”

Some protesters also demanded income-based prioritisation within the quota for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes.

“We are not saying that economically weaker people should be left without support,” PTI quoted another protester as saying. “We are saying that assistance should be targeted at those who need it, including through scholarships, fee support and coaching.”

Earlier this month, the Union government had opposed income-based prioritisation within the quota in a submission to the Supreme Court. The government maintained that the quotas are based on historical and social backwardness, not just on economic status.

Edited by Neerad Pandharipande.

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