Maratha quota rowWhen Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde agreed to the demands of Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil, an ally in the Maharashtra government, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Chhagan Bhujbal tore into the state and called it just an “eyewash”.
Bhujbal, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies in the Maharashtra government, questioned the “backdoor entry” of Marathas into the Other Backward Class (OBC) community.
On Saturday, January 27, Jarange Patil called off his protest when the Maharashtra government responded to the demands with a draft ordinance regarding reservation of education and jobs under the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) category. Shinde offered juice to the activist to end his indefinite hunger strike.
Following the developments, Bhujbal termed the state government's draft notification providing Kunbi certificates to all Marathas as mere “eyewash”, and the said caste is determined by birth and not by affidavits.
Chaggan Bhujbal, an OBC leader, observed, “birth determines caste.”
The Maharashtra government this morning issued a draft notification to recognize all blood relatives of the members of the Maratha community whose Kunbi caste details have been found as Kunbis. Kunbi, an agricultural community, falls in the OBC category.
Manoj Jarange demanded Kunbi certificates for all Marathas.
Bhujbal, the Union Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, said, “The draft notification issued by the state government providing Kunbi certificates to all Marathas is an eyewash. It was a matter of inquiry whether it is unfair for OBCs or Marathas to be fooled. .”
“Intellectuals from the Maratha community should also think about it,” he said, adding that the community entered the OBC reservation through a back door.
Responding to queries on CM Shinde, he announced that Marathas will get OBC benefits until they get reservation.
“Caste is determined by birth and not by affidavits,” Chaggan Bhujbal said. “What if Dalits and Adivasis also make a similar demand that all blood relatives get caste certificate,” asked the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar.
Bhujbal also targeted Manoj Jarange over his demand to reserve recruitment vacancies for Marathas and reserve 100 percent free education for community members. “Why only Marathas? Let all castes including Brahmins get free education,” he said. Bhujbal said he has invited all OBC leaders for talks on Sunday to discuss the issue.
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Published: Jan 27, 2024 3:05 PM IST