Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday reached out to fasting Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, saying the government is ready to discuss demands that are legally and constitutionally valid and do not violate Supreme Court orders.
Jarange is on the second day of an indefinite hunger strike at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, demanding that all eligible Marathas be issued Kunbi caste certificates, which provide reservation benefits under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category. He has warned of marching to Mumbai if the government fails to act by September 12.
Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Fadnavis said government representatives were attending a farmer event in Parbhani to discuss the demands of demonstrators. Jarange had criticised the event and questioned its timing.
"Earlier also we found a way to address their issues, and we are going forward to resolve their demands. Similarly, Eknath Shinde is also very sensitive to these issues from the very beginning," Fadnavis said.
On the second day of his fast, Jarange targeted Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, rebel Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Jadhav and state minister Sanjay Shirsat over the event in Parbhani, alleging that it was being held to mock the Maratha community.
"Why are you bringing Shinde here to dance on our chests? Why hold this programme now in the name of farmers? It could have been organised later," Jarange said.
He alleged that genuine Maratha caste certificates had been cancelled and demanded that the programme be called off, warning that he would travel to the venue if it was not.
"I never go to attack anyone. But our Maratha community's rightful certificates have been cancelled. Hence, cancel the programme immediately; otherwise I will come there," he said.
Jarange has demanded that the government immediately issue Kunbi certificates to eligible Marathas based on 58 lakh historical records. He has also called for the suspension of caste-certificate verification in cases covered by these records.
The activist has demanded reservation based on the Satara Gazette, withdrawal of police cases registered against quota protesters across Maharashtra, and government jobs and financial compensation for families of those who died during earlier Maratha quota agitations.
Jarange said a meeting of the Maratha community's core committee would be held at Antarwali Sarati on September 12 to decide on a proposed hunger strike in Mumbai. He said the Mumbai agitation would not be necessary if the government accepted the demands by then.
Meanwhile, Maratha Kranti Morcha state coordinator Dr Sanjay Lakhe Patil criticised an alleged suggestion by Maharashtra minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil that caste verification committees were unnecessary because such bodies did not exist elsewhere in the country.
Lakhe Patil said such a move could create confusion and resentment among Maratha youth and members of other communities. Calling the reported suggestion "shocking, unconstitutional and illegal", he cited a Supreme Court judgment directing states to establish independent scrutiny committees to verify caste and tribal certificates.
The state government on August 25 extended by one year the tenure of the committee headed by retired High Court judge Sandeep Shinde, which is examining Kunbi records of the Maratha community. The committee's tenure has been extended until June 30, 2027, with the government citing "incomplete work to discover the Maratha-Kunbi genealogy in some districts".
(With inputs from PTI)
