Jats are the dominant caste in Outer Delhi, which with its 28 lakh voters, will be the deciding constituency for the general elections.

With a similar move afoot in Rajasthan, Delhi Congress leaders say it is only politically correct to bring in such a quota in Delhi, which is much closer to the Jat belt.

``If there is a demand for reservation from the Jats there is no question of not supporting it,'' a prominent Jat leader of the Congress, Development Minister Yoganand Shastri, said. But he adds, ``We are only waiting for the reservation to come into force in Rajasthan, where the move is already afoot.''

The Congress in Rajasthan has vociferously demanded job reservations for Jats, a promise which also figures in the party's manifesto for the November Assembly elections. The movement headed by former Union minster Natwar Singh looked promising with Rajasthan Pradesh Congress president Girja Vyas joining the issue.

This would come close on the heels of the Government decision to make Punjabi and Urdu the official second languages of Delhi, a move calculated to garner the good will of both the communities.

However, Congress leaders, as usual, are divided over the issue of giving reservation based on caste to Jats. Says a senior Congressman, ``We have no reason not to do it, especially if other Congress Governments can. And if one state does and another does not, then the impact is lost.''

There are others who do not think there is any option. ``We already have reservation on the basis of community which is bad enough. If now we give reservation to Jats on the basis of caste, then later Gujjars, Brahmins, Rajputs... everyone will want reservation.''

The demand for reservation by Jats in Delhi has been long-standing. It h gathered momentum during the tenure of former Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma, a Jat himself. The demand, however, was abandoned when it did not get the support of the Cabinet. ``We could not do anything for the Jats,'' Sahib Singh says.

But he doesn't think the Congress can go ahead with it. ``The issue has come up repeatedly but it does not work to the advantage of any political party.'' This time round with the elections round the corner the Congress may just be forced to go ahead with the reservation in the Hindi belt.