Monday Musings: Maratha reservation issue takes a troubling turn

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange’s threat to intensify agitation from October 25 if the state does not offer reservation to the community may not immediately prompt the government to act within the deadline he has set. But the support Jarange is receiving within the community has left the state government, especially the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in a fix.

The Marathas have been pressing for reservation for the past one and half decades although the current round of agitation is qualitatively different from previous ones. For the first time, Marathas under the leadership of Jarange, are demanding their inclusion in the Other Backward Class (OBC) category without mincing the words. Those OBC leaders including Chhagan Bhujbal have faced the wrath of community members for opposing the inclusion.

Jarange’s demand, if accepted, would mean including all Marathas under the OBC category. The Marathas account for over 30 per cent of the state’s total population. The inclusion of the Maratha community in the OBC category for the purpose of reservations would have several implications.

This could lead to increased competition among OBC community for a limited number of reserved seats. So government conceding the demand of Maratha community is likely to result in the OBCs getting agitated. This may further disturb the social fabric of Maharashtra.

Knowing this well, the government appears cautious in not committing to the demand put forward by Jarange. With three parties in the alliance, the BJP appears to be in a dilemma on how to go ahead as siding with Marathas on including them in other backward class demands, is likely to further enhance resentment among OBCs. Politically, OBCs have largely sided with the BJP.

Maratha community on the other hand could benefit from affirmative action policies, similar to other OBC groups, if they get reservations. This may help address socioeconomic disparities within the community.

Among the demands set by Jarange is that the state should grant Kunbi status to all Marathas. The Kunbis, a term largely used for Maratha sub-caste engaged in agrarian activities, are recognised as OBCs by the Mandal Commission. While Marathas want Kunbi certificates, many among the community, as cited by Ramdas Kadam, a former minister and Maratha leader from Konkan, with affiliations to Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, do not prefer to extend bonds with peasants when it comes to marriages. This underlines the divisions among different communities.

Interestingly, when Marathas seek to be identified as Kunbis for reservation benefits, there’s growing resentment among Kunbis over the move. Ironically, Kunbis also sought to be identified as Maratha for upward social mobility decades ago.

Marathas are not just the numerically largest, but politically most dominant class in Maharashtra. For the past many decades, the share of Marathas in the state cabinet has not fallen below 52%. For the most part after its formation in 1960, Maharashtra was ruled by a Maratha chief minister. This, according to multiple studies and reports, controls nearly 50% of the state’s educational institutions, 70% of its cooperative institutions and over 70% of agricultural landholdings.

Despite a section of the Maratha community always enjoying fruits of power and economic growth, a large part of the community, especially the youth, have failed to take advantage of the state’s rapidly expanding urban, industrial economy in the post-liberalisation period.

A reaction by a set of youngsters during the recent public rally at Antarwali Sarati, in Jalna district of Maharashtra’s Marathwada region, underlined this. A young face from the community, after attending Jarange’s public rally, said, “Previously Marathas used to rule. Now they have to work with others after migrating to bigger cities.”

As the big cities are levellers, Marathas took time to adjust with others while fulfilling their aspirations.

In the field of higher education, the Marathas could not benefit as much as Dalits, who moved upward due to the Ambedkarite movement and its political awakening. Instead, the Marathas either remained trapped in agriculture or were accommodated only in the informal economy in hamstrung ‘rurban’ localities.