Manoj Jarange's protest for Maratha quota at Mumbai's Azad Maidan enters its third day. Jarange is demanding 10% quota for Marathas and recognition as Kunbis. Maharashtra ministers suggest the community avail the existing EWS quota.
With an eye on upcoming assembly elections after the drubbing in Lok Sabha polls, Maharashtra's Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government will take a decision next week on the Rane committee's recommendation for 20 per cent quota for Marathas in government jobs and educational institutions.
The BJP withdrew Pooja More-Jadhav's candidature in the Pune civic polls after old videos surfaced showing her making remarks against Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his wife.
He also criticised the government over an advertisement published in some prominent newspapers listing the steps taken for the welfare of the Maratha community.
Activist Manoj Jarange announced victory after the Maharashtra government's cabinet sub-committee on Maratha quota accepted most of his demands, including giving Kunbi caste certificates to eligible Marathas, on the fifth day of his indefinite fast.
A protest for Maratha reservation in Jalna district of central Maharashtra turned violent on Friday, leading to dozens of persons including police personnel getting injured, officials said.
Patil said Shinde during his Dussehra speech at Azad Maidan in Mumbai assured the community of reservation.
A financial loss of Rs 8 to Rs 10 crore has been estimated due to the violence.
Thousands of Maratha community members have turned the area surrounding Azad Maidan in Mumbai into a camp during their agitation for quota, disrupting traffic and daily life.
Jarange's hunger strike at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai over the demand for Maratha quota entered the fifth day on Tuesday.
The man, identified as Pramod Jaising Hore, had posted a message on his Facebook page and shared a message on WhatsApp on Sunday, saying he would be ending his life in support of the reservation demand, said Mukundwadi police station's Senior Inspector Natha Jadhav.
Maharashtra Water Resources Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to discuss the ongoing hunger strike by activist Manoj Jarange, who is demanding a 10 per cent quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category.
Protesters were seen thronging the main junctions in south Mumbai, causing traffic snarls during the morning peak hours.
The Maharashtra government has formed a committee to facilitate the issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas who can provide documentary evidence recognizing them as Kunbis in the past, potentially opening the door for reservation benefits.
A substantial number of castes and groups are already placed in the reserved category, getting about 52 per cent of reservations altogether. It would be completely inequitable to place the Maratha community in the Other Backward Class (OBC) category, it said.
Shinde announced that his government is committed to providing reservation to the Maratha community.
Maratha quota movement leader Manoj Jarange is heading to Mumbai to launch a fresh hunger strike, demanding reservation for the Maratha community under the OBC category. He has agreed to meet a government delegation near Pune en route.
Once the Bill is passed in the assembly and notified, the Marathas will be entitled to reservation in the government jobs and in admission in government institutions.
The previous Congress-NCP government had issued an ordinance to grant a 16 per cent quota to Marathas and five per cent to Muslims.
Activists Laxman Hake and Navnath Waghmare, who have been sitting on a hunger strike at Wadigodri village in Jalna district since June 13, did not allow doctors to check their health or administer intravenous fluids.
'Given that his health is failing him, the government might, in a day or two, admit him to hospital.'
The Maratha community is not backward and hence it does not require reservation in government jobs and education, a petitioner argued before the Bombay high court on Wednesday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday and discussed issues related to the Maratha reservation, pending GST compensation and the proposed Metro car shed in Kanjur.
Activist Manoj Jarange, advocating for Maratha reservation, reached Shivneri Fort with supporters en route to Mumbai for a fresh agitation. He demands a 10% quota for Marathas under the OBC category and has been granted permission to protest peacefully in Mumbai.
Quota activist Manoj Jarange demands the Maharashtra government implement a GR for issuing Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas before September 17, threatening further action if the deadline is missed.
Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil has begun his indefinite hunger strike at the Azad Maidan demanding reservation for the Maratha community.
Union minister Narayan Rane has opposed the Maharashtra government's decision to issue Kunbi caste certificates to the Maratha community members and said 'proud Marathas' would not want to be included in that caste segment to avail reservation benefits.
In the last five days, there were instances in which various groups of protesters agitated in front of the Mantralaya (secretariat), Bombay Stock Exchange, were seen roaming along the Marine Drive, Jehangir Art Gallery, Giragon Chowpatty and Gateway of India, but police controlled the crowd and were seen requesting them to take precautions.
The development comes in the wake of an indefinite hunger strike launched by activist Manoj Jarange in Jalna district on Wednesday to demand reservation for the Maratha community.
Activist Manoj Jarange, on a hunger strike for Maratha quota, is open to talks with the government but refuses to leave Mumbai until demands are met. He urges protesters to maintain peace and claims they haven't violated any laws.
Marathas, a politically influential community that constitutes around 30 per cent of the state's population, have been demanding 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education.
He also appealed to the protesters to park their vehicles only in the designated parking areas, hours after the high court frowned on the conduct of protesters.
The apex court said that status of those who have already taken benefits of the 2018 law shall not be disturbed.
Activist Manoj Jarange's hunger strike demanding Maratha quota continues for the third day in Mumbai, following a meeting with a government delegation. The protest has caused traffic disruptions and highlights the ongoing debate over reservation policies in Maharashtra.
OBC activist Laxman Hake was allegedly manhandled and verbally abused by members of the Maratha community in Pune, and a video of the incident surfaced on social media, the police said on Tuesday.
The top court, which refused to pass any interim stay order on the quota, said chances of physical court seem remote due to the persisting COVID-19 pandemic. A bench of Justices L N Rao, Hemant Gupta and S Ravindra Bhatt asked the parties said that all parties should sit together and decide on modalities of hearing like who will take how much time and no one shall repeat the arguments.
Representatives of the Maratha community attributed the stepping up of pressure by the community to the "arrogance and lies" told to its members by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government, and the "uncontrolled anger" among its youth over the delay in getting reservations.
The Supreme Court has dismissed a batch of petitions, including the one filed by the Maharashtra government, seeking review of its 2021 judgment by which it had quashed the state law granting reservations to Marathas in admissions and government jobs.
The activist said leaders opposing Maratha interests would face consequences in the upcoming Vidhan Sabha elections.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday announced the withdrawal of police cases filed against pro-Maratha reservation protesters in Jalna district, the epicentre of the latest round of stir on the issue, and urged quota activist Manoj Jarange to end his indefinite fast.
