CM Shinde scrambles to meet Jarange-Patil’s deadline on reservation notification

MUMBAI: After an ultimatum given by Maratha activist Manoj Jarange-Patil to the state government to implement the ‘Sage-Soyare’ notification by July 13, chief minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday night held a review meeting with officers. According to the latter, although completing the process in one month will be difficult, Shinde asked them to expedite the process so that it met Jarange-Patil’s deadline or was at least close to it. Meanwhile, to pacify the Maratha community, the state government has cancelled the recruitment process of 2,541 posts in the state-owned power company, Mahatransco, to accommodate Maratha reservation.

Jarange-Patil ended his hunger strike on June 13 after a discussion with minister Shambhuraj Desai, who assured him that the CM would personally look into his demands. The reservation activist gave him a deadline of July 13 to issue the final Sage-Soyare notification which will enable Marathas to get Kunbi certificates on the basis of the certificate held by their blood relations.

It was against this backdrop that Shinde held a meeting with senior officials and Shambhuraj Desai, who is a member of the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha reservation. The meeting was a closed-door one, with no officials from the CMO except very senior ones being permitted entry. “The deadline of one month is not enough to complete the process, as thousands of objections and suggestions are yet to be scrutinised,” said an official. “However, the CM has directed us to expedite the process. The government is also working on another demand of Jarange-Patil—to withdraw all police cases against Maratha activists.”

Desai, after the meeting, told the media that the government was “hopeful” of completing the process in one month. “I updated the CM about Jarange-Patil’s demands and the current status of the process in various departments,” he said. “I told Jarange-Patil that it would take around two months to complete the process. But he gave us a one-month deadline so we will put in every effort to issue and implement the final Sage-Soyare notification as he wants.”

Meanwhile, the government has cancelled the recruitment process for 2,541 posts in the state-owned power company Mahatransco to pacify the Maratha community. The advertisement for recruitment was published in 2023 before the Maratha reservation act was passed. Now, considering the anger in the Maratha community that led to the ruling alliance’s abject performance in the Lok Sabha elections, Mahatransco will put out a fresh advertisement with the condition of Maratha reservation. This will be the state government’s message to Maratha youths that it is committed to protecting their interests.