Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Monday accused Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of supporting his cabinet colleague and NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal’s demand for nullifying the Kunbi evidence in Maharashtra.

Addressing a rally in Nanded, Jarange indicated that candidates of the ruling Mahayuti will be defeated in all 288 seats in the upcoming assembly elections.

“I challenge Devendra Fadnavis. You are giving power to Chhagan Bhujbal. We don’t have a problem with it. But you are making OBCs stand against the Marathas. You should not listen to Chhagan Bhujbal and damage the BJP in the state,” said Jarange, who has been demanding the reservation for the Maratha community by recognising them as Kunbis under the OBC grouping.

“Give us the reservation of our share. But if you listen to Chhagan Bhujbal, your 288 candidates (in upcoming assembly polls) will be defeated. We know that we did not get anything since 1980. But then why are they (Fadnavis) repeating the same mistake? When he gave 13 per cent reservation to Marathas, the community gave 106 MLAs to BJP,” he said.

Jarange alleged the government has said on paper that 57 lakh evidences of ‘Kunbi’ are found.

“Even if we consider three people getting benefit from one piece of evidence, 1.5 crore Marathas went into quota and Bhujbal calls me mad even after this,” he claimed.

Jarange alleged that the agitation (of the OBC community) commenced when Marathas were staging protests for reservation, which means the state is supporting OBC agitators and wants violence.

“We want to win this fight (of agitation) by peace. Marathas and OBCs in villages should remain peaceful,” he added.

He accused the government of conspiring against him.

“They tried to attack me and also appointed an SIT (Special Investigation Team) to put me behind bars. But I am not afraid. Officers from the Maratha community are also being threatened now,” Jarange alleged.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

The Bombay High Court on Monday said the Maharashtra government cannot remain a mute spectator amid the Maratha quota protests and had powers to maintain law and order.

A division bench of Justices A S Gadkari and Shyam Chandak said the government does not require orders from the court to control the situation.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by Gunaratan Sadavarte against the protests initiated by Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange.

Last week, Jarange’s advocate V M Thorat had assured the court they were carrying out a peaceful agitation.

On Monday, Sadavarte told the bench the agitation had turned violent in many places across the state.

Advocate General Birendra Saraf and public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar, appearing for the government, told the court 267 cases had been registered across Maharashtra following instances of violence.

The bench then remarked that the state has powers to control the situation.

“It is for the state to take care of the situation. The state cannot be a mute spectator. It has to remove blockades,” the HC said.

If the assurance given by Jarange that the agitation would be peaceful is not kept then it is for the state to “take care of the situation”, the HC said.

Thorat submitted to the bench that these were political issues and should not be brought to court.

He claimed Jarange had called off the agitation on January 26 after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde assured that his demands would be met.

“However, since the demands were not met, a second phase of agitation has started,” Thorat said.

The court posted the matter for further hearing on March 5.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

Activist Manoj Jarange on Monday announced he is withdrawing his 17-day-old fast undertaken over the Maratha quota issue, but insisted he would continue his agitation until the Maharashtra government starts issuing Kunbi caste certificates to extended family members of people already having such documents, thereby allowing them to avail reservation benefits.

Jarange’s decision came a day after he announced a march to Mumbai to press for his demands related to quota in jobs and education for the Maratha community and coincided with the start of the budget session of the state legislature in Mumbai.

Last week, both houses of the state legislature unanimously passed a bill providing 10 per cent separate reservation for the Maratha community in education and government jobs. Jarange, sitting on an indefinite hunger strike since February 10 at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, however, insisted on quota for the Marathas under the OBC category and had continued his fast.

“Although I am suspending my agitation (hunger strike) today, there will be 3 to 4 youths who would sit here and fast every day for our demands. I will also visit some villages and explain my stand to them. They could not come to meet me here (at Antarwali Sarati village) because of restrictions imposed by the home department,” he said.

Asked about several police complaints filed against him over the quota stir, the activist appeared unfazed.

“If they want to prosecute me, I have no issues, but (by doing so) they will invite trouble. People would get angry, and the CM and the home minister would face consequences. It is their call now,” he said.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday evening warned the Maratha quota activist, asking him not to test the patience of the state government after Jarange levelled certain allegations against deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the home portfolio. Jarange had also made some references to the caste of BJP leader Fadnavis, a Brahmin.

The activist had earlier said the Maratha quota bill may not stand legal scrutiny.

In the wake of Jarange’s fast, the government recently issued a draft notification which said if a Maratha person has documentary proof to show that he or she belongs to the agrarian Kunbi community, the person’s ‘sage soyre’ or blood relatives, too, would get Kunbi caste certificates.

The Kunbi community falls in the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) category, and Jarange has been demanding that Kunbi certificates be issued to all Marathas, thus making them eligible for quota benefits.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

Marathas belong to the Kunbi caste, which comes under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, and are not demanding any separate reservation, quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil said during an exclusive interview with NDTV.

Mr Patil, face of the Maratha quota agitation, has been on an indefinite hunger strike since October 25. This triggered a fresh wave of protests and violence broke out in parts of the state on Monday.

However, Mr Patil said the protests are being held peacefully and he’s not aware who are indulging in violence.

The Maratha community has faced injustice for years and this time they will not relent until they get reservation, said the activist. “Marathas across the country support us. I am not afraid of dying. My aim is to get reservation for the Maratha community,” he added.

“We are Kunbis. We are already in the OBC category. Why do we need separate reservation? If one brother gets reservation, then why not another? It is our right,” said Mr Patil. “We, Kunbis, are farmers and if reservation is being given based on one’s occupation, then why aren’t we getting it,” he questioned.

Marathas will keep protesting until the community gets reservation as Kunbis, he asserted. “If law and order situation deteriorate, then it is the responsibility of the government,” added Mr Patil.

The Maharashtra government is in favour of Maratha quota, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said after an all-party meeting in Mumbai today. They also passed a resolution urging Mr Patil to call off his hunger strike.

Mumbai:

Amid incidents of violence over the Maratha reservation issue in parts of Maharashtra, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday called activist Manoj Jarange over the phone and assured a concrete decision on giving Kunbi certificates to the Maratha community during the state cabinet’s meeting to be held later in the day. Jarange has been on an indefinite hunger strike at his native Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district since October 25 to demand reservation for the Maratha community.

After a “satisfactory” discussion with CM Shinde, Jarange started consuming water during his protest, a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

Maratha community members have been staging protests in different parts of the state seeking reservation in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. At some places, quota supporters vandalised and torched the residences of some politicians. A curfew has been imposed in Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district after incidents of violence.

CM Shinde called up Jarange on Tuesday morning and enquired about his health, the CMO statement said.

CM Shinde assured Jarange that he would take a concrete decision regarding issuing Kunbi caste certificates to the Maratha community in the cabinet meeting to be held later in the day, it said.

Shinde also informed Jarange that the state government was prepared to file a curative petition in the Supreme Court over the Maratha reservation issue.

In May 2021, the Supreme Court struck down Maharashtra’s Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018, which granted reservation to the Maratha community, for violating the 50 per cent quota limit.

The Maratha community, led by Jarange, has been demanding the issuance of Kunbi certificates to Marathas, enabling them to get inclusion in the OBC category for reservation. Kunbis (the community associated with agriculture) are grouped under the OBC category in Maharashtra.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)