Sunil Shukre appointed as new Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission chief
Nirgude submitted his resignation on December 4 and it was accepted by the state government on December 9. He refused to comment on his resignation
The state government on Tuesday appointed Justice (Retd) Sunil Shukre as the new chief of Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission (MSBCC) as his predecessor Justice (Retired) Anand Nirgude resigned from the post earlier, a move the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alleged is a result of government interference in the working of the commission.
The state government also announced the appointment of three new members—Om Prakash Jadhav, Maruti Shingare, and Machhindranath Tambe.
Shukre, with a decade-long tenure as a judge, retired on October 24 this year. He was also part of the delegation that met Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil to persuade him to end his fast.
Nirgude submitted his resignation on December 4 and it was accepted by the state government on December 9. He refused to comment on his resignation.
Earlier this month, commission members Balaji Killarikar, a practising advocate at the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court; and Laxman Hake, OBC activist; resigned over differences with other commission members.
They too cited government interference over how to go about ascertaining the social and economic backwardness of the Marathas, who have been protesting for reservation in government jobs and education.
In November, Sanjeev Sonawane, another member of the commission, had resigned without citing any reasons.
According to Hake, the government wanted the commission to work in haste and collect the data for the Maratha community which was “unscientific”.
“This would not help the Maratha community get reservation in the court,” Hake alleged.
“It is unfortunate that after three members, even the commission’s chairman has resigned and the government has accepted the resignation. The members while resigning have already spoken about pressure from the government. The government needs to clarify now under what and whose pressure justice (retired) Nirgude has resigned,” said Vijay Wadettiwar, leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra legislative assembly and OBC leader.
Responding to allegations of pressure being exerted on panel members, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that most of the members who resigned were affiliated with political parties and their appointment was done during the MVA government.
Fadnavis alleged that attempts are being made to delay reservation to Marathas.
“The members who resigned were acting and talking as per their ‘masters direction’. They were acting against the interest of the Maratha community,” said Fadnavis.
“The commission is autonomous and the government does not interfere in its work,” he said.
The state government had earlier directed the commission, a quasi-judicial body, to ascertain if exceptional circumstances justify exceeding the 50% reservation limit for the Maratha community, as set by the Supreme Court.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) faction leader Ambadas Danve, Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council, alleged that some members in the government were trying to deliberately show the commission in a bad light by trying to prove that it was not interested in working towards Maratha reservation.