The Marathas constitute around 30 per cent of the state’s population, and have built a strong political influence of their own in the state and have since been demanding 16 per cent reservation. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has convened a meeting of leaders of all parties in the Vidhan Sabha to discuss the ongoing agitation demanding reservation in education and jobs for the Maratha community.
Maharashtra’s Aurangabad district was saw the highest amount of exertion over the Maratha quota agitation. Stone-pelting by protestors saw around 20 policemen, including eight officers, getting injured at Kopar Khairane and Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday during the bandh as the Maratha outfits called for a shutdown.
On July 26, the decision to convene an all party meet was taken during a meeting chaired by the chief minister at his cabinet colleague Vinod Tawde’s house which was attended by Patil and other Bharatiya Janata Party ministers, including Girish Mahajan, Subhash Deshmukh, and the party’s state unit chief Raosaheb Danve.
“Invitation for tomorrow’s meeting, to be held at Vidhan Bhavan, will be sent across today. We will try and come up with a solution to the issue of Maratha reservation,” Revenue minister Chandrakant Patil reportedly told PTI.
Raosaheb Danve stated that the involvement of the BJP government in the state to provide reservation to the Maratha community was constant while adding that it had also passed an ordinance to the effect. “However, the court had put a stay on the government’s decision,” he mentioned. Danve also gave an insight that the state will submit a report on the Backward Classes Commission to the court and request it to decide on the matter soon.
Danve also insinuated claims that the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party had “dilly-dallied” over the issue for years, but proclaimed that the present government had taken steps to provide reservation to the Marathas.
Resignations of about six MLAs in the state have been submitted over the reservation row.
Simultaneously, Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna has questioned both state and central government over the issue.
“Why can’t CM Fadnavis go to Delhi, meet the Prime Minister and find a solution to the Maratha reservation issue. PM Modi he is not interested in matters related to the state and the country as he is often not in Delhi. To crush protests has become the policy of the government,” Saamna reportedly said in its editorial.
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