MUMBAI: Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil on Saturday announced the protest in Mumbai on September 19 at Azad Maidan to press the demand for Maratha reservations.
Manoj Jarange Patil said that after installing the Ganesh idol on September 13, they will leave his native place, Attarwali Sarati, in the Marathwada region and march towards Mumbai.
“The minister Devendra Fadnavis and the police should halt our march. The court has permitted us to protest for our demand. It is our constitutional right. We will travel 100 km every day and reach Mumbai on September 19,” Jarange Patil said.
He said that the protest in Mumbai will be indefinite. “The people who are joining the protest should join them so that we can meet at one designated route. No one should overtake anyone else. We have to follow the discipline. We have to hold the protest peacefully in a democratic way. We have no intention to hurt anyone. We are coming to Mumbai to press for our reservations. The police should not try to put up barricades anywhere either to stop or disrupt the Maratha community march. We want our right to be fulfilled,” Jarange Patil said.
Jarange Patil said that if the police try to stop them, then they will sleep on the road but will not go back. “We protested last time in Mumbai in a peaceful way, and the same pattern will be followed. The government should not also test the patience of the Maratha community. The government cannot afford to face the ire of the Maratha community. If the Marathas get alienated and express their voting differently, then the incumbent government will topple at any moment. This is the power of the Maratha community,” the Maratha quota activist said.
Earlier, a petition was filed in the Bombay High Court to halt the Maratha community march towards Mumbai. However, the court refused to do so, saying it is the fundamental right of each citizen to protest for their demand. The court said that on mere apprehension, it will not halt the protest.