Maratha reservation activists sitting on fast to press for their demand
By Manish Anand
New Delhi, October 31: Elected leaders in Maharashtra have begun tendering their resignations as Maratha reservation agitation gains further steam in the state. With the activists lobbing the quota ball in the court of the Centre, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is growing worried of the political cost and possible spillover of the negative sentiments in the neighbouring Telangana and Madhya Pradesh.
“The Maratha agitation indisputably is a huge challenge for the BJP. More worrisome is the fact that we don’t really know what to do with the agitation as the campaign is not at all losing steam. We are worried of the extent of the impact of the agitation on the state politics and also elsewhere,” said a senior BJP functionary.
Districts in Telangana bordering Maharashtra has Marathi speaking people and the BJP had lately been making a massive inroads in the support base among them by taking part in the exercise to build Shivaji temples. Also, Madhya Pradesh has also bordering districts which may also be affected by the Maratha reservation campaign. “Worse is the fact that the BJP is busy preparing for the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, and the agitation has now gained the centre stage. Unlike the past episodes of the agitations for the Maratha quota, the current campaign is too serious in nature,” said another senior BJP functionary.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is apparently facing the maximum heat amid the raging Maratha reservation demand. Two of the MPs of his party, Hingoli Hemant Patil and Hemant Godse, have tendered resignations, while a few legislators have also quit. The pressure on the incumbent MPs and MLAs to quit is mounting as the key activist Manoj Jarange-Patil is pressing for a no-condition apply reservation for the Maratha community with a fast.
While Shinde is facing the Maratha reservation heat, deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis is being accused by the rivals for maintaining silence. The Opposition Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is accusing the Shinde government of allowing the agitation to have taken the violent turn.
The popping up of the Maratha reservation agitation, said a senior BJP leader, is a challenge in addition to the demands of the caste census in the country being stoked by the Opposition. The activists are seeking the Centre to move Constitution amendment to allow higher reservation in jobs and educational institutions that then ceiling of 50 per cent fixed by the Supreme Court.
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