Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange urges scholars to submit suggestions for robust reservation law

Manoj Jarange /PTI

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange is pushing experts to submit written comments to the government in support of a robust reservation law. Following negotiations with the Maharashtra government, Jarange ended his indefinite fast and gained advantages for Marathas comparable to those enjoyed by Other Backward Classes (OBCs), per PTI report.

According to the report, the government published a draft regulation recognising blood relatives of Marathas from the agrarian Kunbi community as Kunbi, an OBC category. Jarange is currently urging scholars to submit written comments to reinforce the Maratha quota law. He emphasised the importance of providing constructive feedback rather than simply expressing opinions on social media platforms.

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According to PTI, while returning to his village, he said, "A law for the Maratha quota is underway. People have been asked to give their suggestions on it in the next 15 days. Scholars from the Maratha community should write their views and send them to the government. This will help to strengthen the law for Marathas. They (scholars) should not waste their energy in writing (their views) on social media."

Jarange also informed the Maratha community in Marathwada about the reservation and encouraged the formation of taluka-level committees to locate Kunbi records, the agency reported.

He further stated, "We have appealed to the government to consider the gazette of 1884 which has the census done (before it). People from the Marathawada region will get reservations for sure. They should remain tension-free. In some villages, we have found that records have been burnt, so, we will appeal to the government to consider the records found in neighbouring villages."

Meanwhile, OBC leader Chhagan Bhujbal and others have expressed dissatisfaction with the government's decision, preparing rallies on February 1 against the draft and the Kunbi records committee.

"The meeting passed a resolution to cancel the draft published by the chief minister on January 26. The second demand is to discontinue justice (retd) Sandeep Shinde committee (looking into Kunbi records of Marathas) because it is an unconstitutional body," Bhujbal was quoted as saying in the PTI report.

Jarange expressed confidence in the gazette notification, emphasising the good impact on OBCs and stating his willingness to resume fasting at Azad Maidan if necessary. Jarange plans to visit Raigad Fort and the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Memorial in the coming days.

"Nothing will happen now. It is a gazette notification. Our intention is very clear, the OBCs will also benefit from this law. If anything wrong happens (on the quota issue), I will again go on a fast at the Azad Maidan (in Mumbai)," Jarange was quoted asserting.