“We Have Won”: Maratha Quota Activist Ends 5-Day Fast After Breakthrough
Mumbai:
In signs of a breakthrough in the Maratha quota agitation, the Maharashtra government has agreed to Maratha leader Manoj Jarange Patil’s primary demand to implement the Hyderabad Gazette that identifies Marathas as belonging to the Kunbi peasant community. The government has also agreed to withdraw all cases filed against those protesting in demand for the reservation. Following a meeting with a cabinet sub-committee, Mr Patil said that once the government issues a resolution, his supporters will vacate Mumbai by 9 pm. Hours after the announcement, he ended his 5-day fast, saying, “We have won”. He was seen having water offered by Maharashtra minister Radhakrishna Vikhepatil to end his hunger strike.
Mr Patil was on a hunger strike in Mumbai’s Azad Maidan to demand reservation in jobs and education for Marathas belonging to Marathwada and western Maharashtra region. The government has said it is taking proactive steps to address the reservation issue.
A cabinet sub-committee today met Mr Patil at the protest site in Mumbai’s Azad Maidan. Ministers Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Manikrao Kokate, Shivendra Raje Bhosale are among those present in the meeting, which was the first such communication between the state government and the quota agitation leader.
Mr Patil has said the cabinet sub-committee has agreed to implement the Hyderabad Gazette to fulfill the Maratha reservation demand. Mr Patil has been insisting on the Hyderabad Gazette because he considers it undeniable proof that Marathas in the Marathwada region were officially recorded as Kunbis, a peasant caste. This document helps him position the reservation not as a political move, but as a restoration of a historical identity. In Maharashtra, the Kunbi community enjoys reservation under the OBC category. For the Maratha reservation issue, the Hyderabad Gazette is relevant because the Marathwada region of present-day Maharashtra was part of the Hyderabad State.
