Activist Manoj Jarange on Tuesday announced that his fight had succeeded after the Maharashtra government’s cabinet sub-committee accepted most of his demands related to the Maratha quota. The breakthrough came on the fifth day of his indefinite hunger strike at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan, sparking jubilant scenes among his supporters.
“We have won,” Jarange told the Maratha quota protesters after a meeting with the state government panel led by minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil.
Cabinet sub-committee’s assurance on Kunbi caste certificates
Vikhe Patil, accompanied by Shivendrasinh Bhosale, Uday Samant and Manikrao Kokate, met Jarange on Tuesday afternoon and shared the draft finalised by the committee. Among the major assurances, the government agreed to implement the Hyderabad Gazette, with caste certificates to be issued to Marathas having Kunbi records after due verification.
Jarange read out the panel’s draft before his supporters, confirming that a government resolution (GR) on the Hyderabad Gazette would be issued immediately. He further said that the Satara Gazette would be implemented within a month.
Govt Relief for Maratha quota protesters, families of deceased
According to Jarange, the government also assured that cases filed against Maratha protesters will be withdrawn by the end of September. He added that the kin of those who lost their lives during the agitation would receive financial aid and government jobs based on their educational qualifications within a week.
The committee informed him that Rs 15 crore had already been distributed among the families of deceased protesters, with the remaining assistance to be cleared in the coming week.
Maharashtra Minister Points To Legal hurdles, Says GR On Kunbi Certificates In 2 Months
Vikhe Patil highlighted that nearly eight lakh objections had been received regarding the ‘sage soyare’ (blood relatives) notification, which required time for examination. He added that the government was also considering legal measures to issue a GR equating Kunbis and Marathas as one community, a process that will take two months, PTI reported.
Following Jarange’s announcement of “victory”, celebrations erupted across the Azad Maidan protest site.
The activist had launched his fast on August 29, demanding a 10 per cent reservation for the Maratha community in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.
High Court Orders Protesters to Vacate Azad Maidan
In a major development, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed Jarange and his supporters to vacate Azad Maidan or face action. According to news agency ANI, the court also observed, “Respondent number 5 (Manoj Jarange) may be held responsible for aiding and abetting people coming to Mumbai beyond a certain number of 5,000. Tomorrow, the matter will be taken up at 1.00 pm. But by this order, we must indicate that this court will pass any order and against anyone to keep the majesty of the law. Any breach of the order passed by this court will not be tolerated.”
On the request of Jarange’s lawyer, Satish Maneshinde, the court adjourned the matter till Wednesday, subject to compliance with earlier directives.
Attorney General Birender Saraf told the court, “We have followed all the procedures through the police, and we have provided a list of the violations committed by them. So I request that my learned friend (Maneshinde) give an undertaking that they will leave Mumbai completely and go out. It will have an impact only if his clients and their supporters leave Mumbai and go out. Ganeshotsav is going on and thousands of people pin roads, and we have to maintain law and order also with police personnel.”
The bench, however, pulled up the Attorney General, stating, “You should have come to us on the very second day and have said that the number of people is more than 5000. You let this situation come to this point. We will pass an order against you also, as you are also in breach of our orders.”
The matter has now been adjourned till Wednesday, with the court stating, “We are adjourning the matter till tomorrow, and we expect that something will come out of it.”
Advocate Maneshinde also informed the court that “Manoj Jarange has issued a statement appealing to his supporters not to create any traffic problems and not to gather in numbers exceeding 5,000.”
Police Clear Protest Area Amid Tensions
Earlier, Mumbai Police began clearing vehicles belonging to protesters parked around Azad Maidan following the court’s order. Deputy Commissioner of Police Pravin Mundhe, along with a large police team, was seen urging protesters to remove their trucks and tempos parked along Mahapalika Marg near the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation headquarters.
Protesters resisted, arguing that the vehicles carried essentials such as food and water. Heated exchanges followed, with riot police called in to manage the situation. At certain points, police personnel were gheraoed by protesters, PTI reported.
Officials later assured agitators of alternative parking arrangements, requesting them to move some vehicles to Navi Mumbai.
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