Mumbai: Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange on Monday stepped up preparations for a fresh agitation in Mumbai, urging community members to quietly start moving towards the city and remain discreet until September 12, when he plans to announce the next course of action if the government fails to meet their demands.
Hunger Strike Enters Third Day
Jarange, whose indefinite hunger strike at Antarwali Sarati in Jalna district entered its third day, appealed to Marathas to adopt what he called a “guerrilla strategy” while travelling to Mumbai. He asked supporters not to put flags on their vehicles and to avoid drawing attention to their movement.
“Start going to Mumbai quietly from now itself,” Jarange told protesters, urging them to stay with relatives, friends and acquaintances rather than immediately assembling at Azad Maidan or outside the Chief Minister’s official residence.
September 12 Meeting Planned
He said a meeting would be held at Antarwali Sarati on September 12 if the government did not accept the community’s demands, and a final date for the Mumbai agitation would then be announced. Jarange said he would continue his hunger strike and personally accompany protesters to Mumbai.
His principal demand is that eligible members of the Maratha community be recognised as Kunbis and issued Kunbi caste certificates, enabling them to access reservation benefits available to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in education and government employment. He has claimed that 58 lakh records establishing a genealogical link between Marathas and Kunbis have been identified and alleged that efforts were being made to reduce this figure.
Other Reservation Demands
The other demands include reservation based on the Satara Gazette, withdrawal of police cases filed against quota protesters across Maharashtra, and government jobs and financial assistance for families of those who died during earlier Maratha reservation agitations.
Jarange also made an emotional appeal, saying that even if he died during the hunger strike, his body should be taken to Mumbai for the agitation. He had refused intravenous fluids on Sunday despite medical advice after his blood sugar levels dropped.
The activist’s latest stand comes a day after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the government was willing to discuss demands that were constitutionally valid and legally viable, while ruling out anything contrary to Supreme Court orders. Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also said the Mahayuti government was committed to doing justice to the Maratha community.
Jarange had led a major five-day agitation in Mumbai from August 29 to September 2 last year, demanding Kunbi certificates for eligible Marathas. The protest caused severe traffic disruption in South Mumbai and drew the intervention of the Bombay High Court. The agitation was called off after the state government accepted six of his eight demands and initiated administrative steps relating to Kunbi classification certificates.
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