Osmanabad youth allegedly dies by suicide in Maratha reservation protests

Mumbai: The ongoing agitation of the Maratha community took a tragic turn on Wednesday evening when a youth in Osmanabad died after jumping into a pond. Kisan Mane was a 30-year old farmer and was also working as a vendor in the neighbouring areas to support his family, locals said. His was the first suicide in the last few years for the cause of Maratha reservation.

Mane jumped into the Waijnath Maharaj pond at about 4.30 pm. Locals claimed that he got stuck in the mud and could not be saved despite attempts. His death led to rising tension in the district, and a bandh was called on Thursday. Angry locals gathered outside the government hospital with Mane’s mortal remains, continuing their protest later in the day outside the deputy collector’s office, where the mob torched a few vehicles.

The local administration neither denied nor confirmed that the demand for reservation was the motive behind Mane’s suicide. Osmanabad collector Sachin Ombase said that they were investigating the claims. “The sub-divisional officer of Umarga has been asked to inquire and submit a report to the collector’s office on the claims made by relatives,” Ombase told Hindustan Times. Marathi news channels showed villagers shouting slogans in support of reservation.

On July 23, 2018, Kakasaheb Shinde, a 28-year old Maratha youth in Aurangabad district, had died by suicide by jumping into the Godavari river. He was the first one to kill himself demanding reservation, after which a few more youths from the community also ended their lives for this.

Maratha activist Manoj Jarange-Patil, who has been on a hunger strike in Jalna from August 29, urged youngsters not to take extreme steps. “I am fighting for reservation for you, and if you die by suicide, then who will get its benefits?” he asked “I urge you to not take any extreme step. I hope no one else will try to end his life on this issue henceforth,” he said, making an emotional appeal.

Meanwhile, a bandh was observed in Sangli in western Maharashtra to protest against the police lathi charge in Jalna last Friday. A bike rally was also taken out by youths demanding reservation for the Maratha community. Activists from the community held a road block on the Mumbai-Agra national highway in Nashik. A protest was held in Hingoli and a bandh was observed in Kunjirwadi, Pune to condemn the police action. A group of youths, who carried out a foot march from Aurangabad, reached Jalna to extend their support to Jarange-Patil, who is still on his hunger strike.

On May 5, the Supreme Court quashed the 12 percent and 13 percent reservation in education and jobs to the Maratha community under the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018. The five-judge bench also refused to refer the 1992 Indra Sawhney judgment, which set a 50 percent cap on reservation, to a larger bench for reconsideration.