Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis praised activist Manoj Jarange for ending his five-day hunger strike over the Maratha reservation demand, stating that the government had found a solution in the community’s best interest.
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1. Fadnavis said that his administration has consistently prioritised the welfare of the Maratha community and expressed optimism that the state’s decision on the quota issue would bring them significant benefits, PTI reported.
2. Fadnavis said the government told protesters that the caste certificate can be given to individuals and not the community. “We have found a way out and accepted their most prominent demand to implement the Hyderabad gazetteer. We did not have any two thoughts about it. They were demanding that it should be implemented for all Marathas. But we tried to convince them that reservation is not for a group but for individuals, hence this kind of decision cannot be taken as proof is needed for that. The Hyderabad gazetteer will be of help as a proof,” he said.
3. Manoj Jarange ended his hunger strike at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon, after the Maharashtra government agreed to most of his demands. Among them was the decision to issue Kunbi caste certificates to eligible Marathas, allowing them to access reservation benefits under the Other Backwards Classes (OBC) category.
5. The 43-year-old activist broke his fast by accepting a glass of fruit juice from senior BJP minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, who chairs the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha reservation, and other officials present at the protest site.
6. Fadnavis noted there was some misconception among OBCs over reservation to Marathas, but it is misplaced. Replying to a query that he faced a lot of criticism and was targeted, the CM said he always believed that in political life, people sometimes praise you and sometimes criticise.
7. “However, from day one, my stand was that we will not let any dispute crop up between the Marathas and OBCs. We can’t snatch something from one group and give it to the other. Our decision will benefit both of them and I think we have done that only. I am happy that we could take a good decision that will benefit the Maratha community in a big way,” he said.
8. Civic workers laboured through the night to clean up large amounts of garbage, leftover food, and empty water bottles scattered across the roads and Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, following the end of Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange‘s hunger strike, PTI reported.
9. After the five-day protest concluded and demonstrators dispersed, some activists attempted to distribute the remaining food, donated by community members from across Maharashtra, to residents and passersby in the area on Tuesday.
10. A Maratha community activist said on Tuesday that while they would have helped clean the protest site, many protesters from outside Mumbai had already left, and local participants had dispersed due to Ganpati immersion celebrations.
(With inputs from agencies)
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