Last Updated:
Accepting the government resolution from the Maratha quota cabinet sub-committee, activist Manoj Jarange Patil asked his supporters to head home from the protest site
A doctor checks blood pressure of activist Manoj Jarange Patil during his hunger strike demanding Maratha reservation at Azad Maidan, in Mumbai on September 2. (Image: PTI)
Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil claimed victory and ended his five-day hunger strike after the Maharashtra government accepted most of his demands, including giving out Kunbi caste certificates, on Tuesday.
Accepting the government resolution from the Maratha quota cabinet sub-committee, Jarange asked his supporters to head home from the protest site at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan.
“We have won,” Jarange told his supporters, making the announcement after his meeting with the cabinet sub-committee headed by minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil in the afternoon. Other committee members – Shivendrasinh Bhosale, Uday Samant, Manikrao Kokate – were also present at Azad Maidan as they discussed the final draft with him.
Earlier in the day, on directions from the Bombay High Court, the Mumbai Police asked Jarange and his team to vacate the protest site at the earliest.
Jarange said the sub-committee accepted his demands to implement the Hyderabad Gazette and said Marathas with Kunbi records will be given caste certificates after conducting a proper inquiry.
He read out the committee’s draft points to his supporters which said it has accepted implementation of the Hyderabad Gazette and a GR will be issued immediately. The implementation of the Satara Gazette will be done in a month’s time, he said. As per the assurance given by the committee, cases against Maratha protesters filed earlier will be withdrawn by the end of September, he added.
The activist said it was also decided that financial aid and government jobs will be given within a week as per the educational qualifications to the kin of those who lost their lives during the protests so far. The committee told him that Rs 15 crore assistance has been given (to the kin of the deceased protesters) so far and the rest will be given in a week’s time, he said.
WHAT DID THE MAHARASHTRA GOVT SAY?
Vikhe Patil said 8 lakh objections have been received to the sage soyare (blood relatives) notification, and the state government needs time to scrutinise them.
He said the government is also exploring legal options to issue a GR stating that Kunbis and Marathas are the same community, and it will take two months for the process.
After Jarange’s announcement of victory, celebrations erupted among the Maratha quota protesters in and around Azad Maidan. He began his hunger strike from August 29 to press for the demand of a 10 percent quota for the Maratha community in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) grouping.
(With PTI inputs)
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d…Read More
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d… Read More
Read More
