In a landmark development addressing the longstanding demands of the Maratha community, the Maharashtra legislature unanimously passed a bill during a one-day special session on Tuesday. The bill grants 10% reservation for the Marathas in education and government jobs under a separate category. However, members of the community in Pune raised various concerns and expressed dissatisfaction with the bill passed in the assembly. FPJ attempted to speak to several stakeholders to gather their perspectives on the matter.
Mahesh Shete, a resident of Parvati Hill, emphasized that the protest will persist as they are advocating for reservation in the OBC category. On the other hand, Abhijit Madane, a resident of Ravet, expressed his support for the government's decisions, noting that the true impact of the decision will become evident after the elections.
Harshvardhan Shinde, a student of the law college, raised questions about the Maratha reservation, stating, "Regarding reservation, the court has set a limit of 50 percent in the 1992's Indra Sawhney & Others v. Union of India judgment. The limit imposed by the court has been exceeded while giving Maratha reservation. So this reservation will not stand the test of law. If members of the community are backward, why did the government create a separate category for them? Why were they not included in the OBC category?"
Ambadas Mevhankar, a SARTHI research scholar, expressed his opinion, stating, "Merging the Maratha community into the OBC community will be unfair. However, the protest by the Marathas will end if it happens, but this will not be an easy decision for the government to apply."
Ravindra Dhangekar, MLA Kasba Peth, in a statement to Free Press Journal, mentioned, "Due to the upcoming election, the decision has been taken by the ruling party in the assembly. However, the demands of Maratha Reservation leader Manoj Jarange Patil are not fulfilled. The government diverted the Maratha people's demand by making this decision."
Siddhart Sirole, MLA Shivaji Nagar, stated, "We stand for truth and fulfilled the promise that was committed to the public."
Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress Party - Sharadchandra Pawar chief Sharad Pawar said that the same draft of the Maratha Reservation Bill, which was earlier passed by his party, has been passed unanimously in the Maharashtra Assembly.
"When we had the government, it could not be done because of the decision of the High Court, later during the time of Devendra Fadnavis, it was cleared by the High Court but was rejected by the Supreme Court. This time too it is the same draft which was passed unanimously by all in the Assembly," Pawar said speaking to reporters on Tuesday in Pune.
