VIDEOS: Maratha Quota Activist Manoj Jarange Reaches Shivneri Fort In Pune Ahead Of Mumbai Protest

Activist Manoj Jarange, who has set out for Mumbai to launch an agitation to press for reservation to the Maratha community, reached the Shivneri Fort's base in Pune district along with hundreds of supporters on Thursday morning.

He is likely to pay homage to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the fort, the birthplace of the Maratha warrior king.

Jarange on Wednesday left along with his supporters from Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, located over 400 km from Mumbai, to launch a fresh hunger strike, but agreed to meet a government delegation near Pune on his way to the state capital.

The 43-year-old activist has been demanding a 10 per cent quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.

Jarange told reporters in Jalna that he had received a call from Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, informing him that a government team would arrive at Shivneri for talks.

However, Vikhe Patil, who heads the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha quota, on Wednesday said no decision had been taken at the state level to hold discussions with Jarange.

The activist has assured his supporters would protest peacefully and not disrupt the ongoing Ganesh festival.

Jarange has been demanding that all Marathas be recognised as Kunbis - an agrarian caste included in the OBC category - which will make them eligible for reservation in government jobs and education.

The Jalna police allowed Jarange and his supporters to proceed with their march after imposing 40 conditions, directing them to avoid any law and order situations, not to cause disruptions to the movement of vehicles and desist from avoiding "objectionable" slogans.

In Mumbai, a senior inspector of the Azad Maidan police station has written a letter to the activist, granting him permission -- in response to an application -- to stage peaceful protests at Azad Maidan on August 29 between 9 am to 6 pm. At 6 pm, all protesters will have to leave the site, the letter said.

After entering Mumbai, from Wadi Bunder Junction only five vehicles of main protestors can head to Azad Maidan and the number of protestors there should not cross 5,000, it said.