Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil to go on indefinite fast again from January 25

Quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil said on Tuesday that he would launch an indefinite fast on January 25 to increase pressure on the state's Devendra Fadnavis government to accept the Maratha community's demands for reservation in jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.

Patil urged the members of the Maratha community to attend the protest in large numbers, news agency PTI reported. “No one should stay at home. Come to Antarwali Sarthi (village), and let us show our collective strength,” he said, adding that there will be “no compulsion or pressure on anyone”.

The activist accused the state government of “cheating” and said it failed to fulfil its promises to the Maratha community. “We will not spare them if they don't meet our demands during the ongoing winter session,” Patil said.

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He demanded that the state government implement the draft notification that recognises the “Kunbis” as related by birth or marriage to the Marathas (sage soyare) and grant reservations to the latter under the OBC category.

Patil also demanded that the state speed up the work undertaken by the Justice (retd) Sandeep Shinde Committee. The Mahayuti government formed the committee to expedite the process of granting “Kunbi” certificates to the Marathas, which makes them eligible for reservations.

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The 42-year-old activist, emphasising the same demand, went on six hunger strikes last year. In February 2024, the Mahayuti government unanimously passed a bill providing 10% reservation for the Marathas in education and government jobs under a separate category.

However, Jarange has been insisting on quota for the community under the OBC head. The agrarian Kunbi community already receives quota benefits under the OBC category.

U-turn before poll

Before voting in the Maharashtra assembly election, Patil withdrew his list of candidates and decided to support the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) against the Mahayuti alliance.

Patil withdrew from the fray as he had not received a response from smaller allies representing castes like the Dalits and Muslims. He had been banking on them to field candidates as part of his plan. Patil also said he had realised that no election could be fought in the name of a single caste.

(With PTI inputs)