Mumbai prepares for long haul as Manoj Jarange-Patil returns to protest for Maratha quota

Mumbai: In what was a defining moment vis-a-vis the four-decades-old demand of Maratha reservation, Manoj Jarange-Patil - who in the past couple of years has emerged as the face of the agitation - launched his fast-unto-death at the historic Azad Maidan in Mumbai on Friday and declared that he would not return till the demand is met.

Jarange-Patil launched the fast-unto-death at 10.00 am amid roaring support from thousands of his supporters who donned saffron caps and scarfs even as ‘ek Maratha, lakh Maratha’, ‘Chalo Mumbai’, 'Manoj Dada….aage bado, hum tumhare saath hai’ rent the air.

Intermittent rains did not dampen the spirits of Maratha protestors at the Azad Maidan and several others who took shelter at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.

The protests immediately led to the blame game between the ruling Mahayuti and opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, who accused each other of ignoring the demands of Marathas and playing with their sentiments.

Jarange-Patil, who arrived in Mumbai from the Antarwali Sarathi village in Jalna district, before launching the fast-unto-death, invoked the blessings of iconic Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Lord Ganesh.

The demand of Jarange-Patil is the implementation of reservation for the Marathas as Kunbis, a sub-caste covered under OBC, which the latter are objecting to, and have threatened to launch parallel agitation in Nagpur from Saturday.

“I am ready to face bullets…I am ready to go to jail…come what may…I am not going to back out,” Jarange-Patil said addressing a mammoth crowd as he launched the agitation and expressed his willingness to talk.

However, since no formal delegation of the government came to him, this agitated him and in the evening, he said, “The government should stop playing games.”

The Mumbai Police had given permission for one day for Jarange-Patil to hold the agitation, however, he is in no mood to return. “I will die…I am not leaving,” he said, adding that he was open to talks with the government.

However, since he had decided to stay put, the police have extended the permission by a day’s time for Saturday.

Jarange-Patil asked his supporters to cooperate with the police and administration. “There should be no stone pelting, no arson,” he said.

Making an emotional appeal, he said: “I have a family…but for the cause I have made the Maratha community my family…we must not do anything that may put us to shame…the entire society is looking at us…there should be only victory in your mind.”

It was like a sea of saffron coinciding with the festivities of Ganeshotsav, which has been declared as the Rajya Mahotsav, the State Festival.

Jarange-Patil, the founder of Shivba Sanghatana, who is spearheading the campaign for the past two years, and has become a face of it said that he would not budge.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his two deputies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar asserted that the government was sympathetic to the cause of Marathas.

“We are confident that we would resolve the issue,” said Fadnavis, adding that Jarange-Patil must ensure that there is no untoward incident. “In a democratic set-up, each one has the right to carry out a protest to press their demand, but while doing that, it should also be ensured that no untoward incident takes place…even Jarange-Patil has told this to supporters,” he said.

"The Bombay High Court has given one day's permission for the protest at Azad Maidan; however, Jarange Patil has sought more days to continue his protest. The police and local administration will look into it and will deal with it positively. We are working as per the guidelines of the court, and the administration will also follow the same. We are abiding by the court directives now," the CM said.

Shinde blames Uddhav

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde slammed the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi for blocking the Maratha reservation when it was in power between November 2019-June 2022.

Shinde, the chief leader of Shiv Sena, launched a scathing attack on Shiv Sena (UBT) chief and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, who headed the MVA dispensation comprising Congress, undivided Shiv Sena and undivided Sharad Pawar-led NCP.

“In 2016–17, then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis (who headed the BJP-undivided Shiv Sena government) had worked to grant reservation to the Maratha community. However, some people went to the Supreme Court against it. The MVA government and Thackeray failed to defend Maratha reservation in court,” he alleged.

“When I was Chief Minister heading the Mahayuti government, the Maratha community was given 10 percent reservation, and even today the community continues to benefit from it. To identify and recognise the number of Kunbis', a committee under Justice Shinde was formed, and it is still working. Through SARTHI, various scholarships are being given to Maratha students. Through the Annasaheb Patil Financial Development Corporation, thousands of Maratha youth became entrepreneurs. The loan limit in this scheme was raised from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 15 lakh. Hostel allowances are also being provided to Maratha students. All these efforts undertaken by the government are evident before the Maratha community,” Shinde said.

Why is MVA quiet, asks BJP

As Manoj Jarange-Patil staged a mammoth show of strength demanding Maratha reservation under OBC quota, the BJP questioned the silence of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi comprising BJP, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) over the issue.

“Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar, and the Congress, who ignored the Maratha community during the MVA regime,” Maharashtra BJP’s chief spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said.

“The Maratha community's agitation in Mumbai will undoubtedly be peaceful and historic,” he said.

“Even today, these three are only trying to play politics. They remain silent on Jarange Patil’s demand for reservation from the OBC quota. Now, these parties must clarify their stance. The BJP’s position is that the Maratha community should be given reservation without affecting the OBC quota,” he added.

“Jarange-Patil has the right to criticize the government in a democracy, but now it is necessary to demand clarity from Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, and the Congress Party regarding their demands,” Upadhye said.

The BJP chief spokesperson pointed out that it was Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the Mahayuti, who had been sympathetic to the cause of the Maratha community.

MVA slams government

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi on Friday accused the Mahayuti dispensation of having a “lack of will” to give reservation to the Maratha community and slammed Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

“They are not terrorists. They have come to Mumbai for their legitimate rights, not to create chaos. If the Marathi people are not going to protest in Mumbai, where else, Surat or Guwahati? Mumbai is the capital of the Marathi people,” said Shiv Sena (UBT) chief and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, who had headed the MVA dispensation.

“Political will is needed to give Maratha reservation and that is what BJP and Devendra Fadnavis do not have. This is not today's question but a demand pending for many years. The reservation given to the Maratha community was lost by the BJP and Fadnavis government for not providing empirical data in the Supreme Court. What happened to the announcement of Fadnavis who had made a hue and cry that if you give us power, we will give Maratha reservation in 7 days?,” asked state Congress chief Harshavardhan Sapkal.

Sapkal said that the Maratha community had announced to protest in Mumbai three months ago but the government did not take any initiative in these three months. Now the Maratha community is being stopped, first permission was not given, later permission was given only for one day. It is being said that the traffic system and situation in Mumbai has deteriorated but the BJP government is responsible for this. Was the government asleep for three months? Do not defame the Maratha agitators for the situation in Mumbai,” said Sapkal.