Maharashtra Minister of Public Health and Family Welfare, Tanaji Sawant, on Friday offered condolences to the family of Prasad Dethe, a 38-year-old man who died by suicide over the Maratha reservation demand in Pune.
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Dethe was found hanging from an iron bar on a truck in the Lonikand area early on Wednesday morning. A suicide note was found on his body. In the handwritten note, Dethe advocated for the Maratha community's inclusion under the OBC category for reservation benefits, for which activist Manoj Jarange has been agitating.
The note urged Jarange to continue his agitation until the reservation was secured. It also appealed to prominent political figures such as Pankaja Munde and Chhagan Bhujbal to support the Maratha quota right.
Before taking the extreme step, Dethe conducted a 'Facebook Live' session and spoke on the quota issue at length.
Meanwhile, Sawant handed over an ex-gratia amount of ₹5 lakh to Dethe's wife and said, "The government is there for you all. Don't worry about the children. Take care."
Speaking later, the minister got emotional and said, "With folded hands, I want to tell everyone not to take such an extreme step."
