MUMBAI: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is likely to be the worst affected by the ongoing agitation by Dhangar (shepherd) community demanding Scheduled Tribes status. Ajit’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is opposing the demand. Their stand has angered the community, which is dominant in Ajit’s constituency, Baramati.
The Dhangars have held violent protests in the state pressing for their demand to be met. They have made Baramati the epicentre of their protests in a clear signal to Ajit. The community leaders sat for hunger strike in Baramati and protested outside Ajit’s residence in Sahyog Society here. The state government’s decision to give the Marathas 16 per cent reservation in jobs and education has made Dhangars more aggressive in their protests.
A politically significant community, the Dhangars can influence the poll outcome in Baramati, Indapur, Sangli, Madha and other four nearby constituencies in Satara and Solapur districts. They are demanding ST status so that they can avail benefits of reservations. If included in the ST category, Dhangars will become the largest constituent in the category because their population is more than that of other ST communities. At present, Dhangars are part of Other Backward Class (OBC), a group of other 27 castes.
An influential ST leader from NCP, Madhukar Pichad was the first to raise his voice against the Dhangar demand. He also arranged counter-agitations opposing ST status for Dhangars. He argues that Dhangars should be given reservation outside the ST quota.
An NCP leader from Mumbai admitted that Dhangars could damage Ajit politically in Baramati. “I don’t think Ajit will lose the polls because of them, but his winning margin will drastically come down,” he said.
The BJP has cleverly taken advantage of the situation. It succeeded in keeping an influential Dhangar leader Mahadev Jankar and his party Rashtriya Samaj Paksha close. The BJP also announced its active support to the agitation. It convinced the BMC to erect a statue of Queen of Indore Ahilyadevi Holkar, a progressive Dhangar administrator, at a prominent place near Mumbai’s iconic Churchgate railway station to impress the community.
BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said the party is supporting Dhangars’ demand because it is legitimate. “NCP has given it a political colour because Ajit Pawar is on a sticky wicket. I will not be surprised if he loses the election,” he said.
Prakash Ambedkar, a prominent Dalit leader and grandson of Dr B R Ambedkar, echoed Bhandari. “Dhangars are very powerful in western Maharashtra. Sharad Pawar had promised them ST status in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. So they voted in his favour and got him elected by a huge margin of three lakh votes though he had shifted from Baramati to Madha. This time, they had decided not to vote for him because he did not keep this word. That is why Pawar chose to enter Rajya Sabha instead of contesting the election,” Ambedkar said.
The state government has pushed the ball in the CentreUnion government’s court by saying it is not authorised to change the status of any community. However, Jankar is determined to “teach a lesson” to Ajit. “We will not accept anything less than ST status. Those who are opposing it will pay a heavy political price for their opposition,” he said.
To pacify the community in a last-ditch effort, Ajit has mooted that toll tax on roads leading to Baramati be waived.