Gujarat Police on Tuesday took into custody Kshatriya community leader Raj Shekhawat. The police are said to have swung into action soon after Shekhawat landed at the Ahmedabad airport to lead a protest at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state headquarters in Gandhinagar.
Assistant Police Commissioner (G Division) VN Yadav said that we have detained Raj Shekhawat from the airport. Another police officer said Shekhawat was recently detained by Ahmedabad cyber crime officials in connection with a suicide threat issued by some Rajput women.
Shekhawat's plan was to surround the BJP headquarters. On 6 April, tension broke out in Ahmedabad after members of the Kshatriya community staged a street protest against Rupala. The same day, five women who threatened suicide were put under house arrest before they could reach the BJP headquarters in Gandhinagar.
In a post on Twitter on April 7, Shekhawat announced that he was planning to gherao the state BJP headquarters 'Kamalam' at 2 pm on Tuesday. Members of the Kshatriya community and their supporters have been asked to come with saffron flags and sticks and join the protest.
Shekhawat, convenor of Rajput community organization Kshatriya Karni Sena Parivar, criticized Union Minister Purushottam Rupala for his controversial remarks. Rupala, the BJP candidate from Rajkot Lok Sabha constituency, claimed at an event on March 22 that former 'maharajas' had surrendered to foreign rulers, including the British, and traded for bread and butter.
Following strong reaction from many members of the community, Rupala apologized but demands from some sections of the community for not giving her ticket continued. On 30 March, Shekhawat said he was resigning from the BJP, after the BJP refused to replace Rupala as its Rajkot candidate.