Tribal outfits hold protest march to oppose plans to give ST status to Dhangars

Hundreds of tribals held a protest march in Nashik in Maharashtra on Thursday opposing any plan to give Scheduled Tribe status to the Dhangar community.
The protest march passed through Sadhugram in Tapovan, Panchvati and other areas like Ravivara Karanja and MG Road in the city, with participants carrying placards and shouting slogans.
Giving Dhangars ST status is a ploy of the Bharatiya Janata Party, alleged some of the protesters, who also shouted slogans against Union minister Bharti Pawar and MLC Gopichand Padalkar, both from the ruling party. Dhangars already have quota under the Other Backward Classes category and giving them ST status would further shrink opportunities for tribals, the protesters claimed.
The memorandum submitted by the protesters to Governor Ramesh Bais and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde through the collector demanded that no decision on quota for Dhangars should be taken without the approval of the Tribal Advisory Committee.
The memorandum also said the report by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences on the Dhangar community must be tabled in the legislature for discussion and debate. Incidentally, OBC outfits have been holding similar protests opposing any plan to give members of the Maratha community Kunbi certificates. Kunbis are categorised as OBCs in the state.