Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange ended his indefinite hunger strike on the sixth day, agreeing to give the state government until July 13 to fulfill his quota-related demands. He described his action as “suspending his agitation,” with a warning that if the demands were not met by the deadline, the Marathas would prepare for the assembly elections. Jarange stated that during the election, he would identify candidates who should not receive votes from the Maratha community.
Political observers noted that the Marathi reservation movement played a role in the BJP and its alliance partners’ poor performance in the general election in Maharashtra. They also highlighted that unlike previous occasions when senior officials were involved, this time, junior minister Shambhuraj Desai, accompanied by newly elected Aurangabad MP Sandipan Bhumare, was sent by the Maharashtra government to persuade Jarange to end his hunger strike.
Jarange’s demands include granting the Marathas blanket reservation from the existing OBC quota, passing the draft notification on ‘sage soyare’ without further delay, issuing Kunbi certificates to blood relatives of Marathas with records, providing free education to all Maratha students until the Maratha reservation issue is resolved, constructing hostels for Maratha students in each district, and withdrawing all criminal cases registered during the Maratha agitation.
Desai mentioned that the state government has scheduled a meeting on Friday to discuss the issue and that the government is positive about fulfilling the demands. He added that if necessary, extra manpower would be deployed to expedite the work.
