Opposition counts on son-of-soil discourse in Maharashtra polls | Opinion

The return of the son-of-soil issue on the agenda of political parties in Maharashtra comes on the backdrop of 13 per cent and 12 per cent reservation in jobs and education respectively offered to Marathas by the Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP government.

In view of the current economic condition in the country, the electoral discourse is turning more nativist with political parties raking up son-of-the-soil issues.

After having spoken about it, the two main opposition parties in Maharashtra – Congress and Nationalist Congress Party – have finally introduced 80 per cent reservations for locals in industrial jobs in Maharashtra. (Hindustan Times)

Thus, it does not come as a surprise that political parties in Maharashtra have joined Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Goa, promising sops to youths through their poll manifestos by introducing employment quota for locals in private firms.

After having spoken about it, the two main opposition parties in Maharashtra – Congress and Nationalist Congress Party – have finally introduced 80 per cent reservations for locals in industrial jobs in Maharashtra.

In their joint manifesto released on Monday, Cong-NCP have proposed to enact a separate legislation reserving 80 per cent jobs for locals, if elected to power. Maharashtra already has rules in place for job reservations for sons-of-the-soil, although its implementation is weak.

The return of the son-of-soil issue on the agenda of political parties in Maharashtra comes on the backdrop of 13 per cent and 12 per cent reservation in jobs and education respectively offered to Marathas by the Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP government. This is in addition to the existing 60 per cent for backward class and economically weaker section. The BJP hopes to reap the benefits in the assembly elections scheduled October 21.

Maharashtra is an industrial state with jobs being a crucial issue here. “As the country’s economic condition is looking bleak, political parties are bound to encash on the insecurity among the youth, who form a key electoral segment,” said Chitra Lele, professor, political science, SNDT university.

But will this help parties during the polls?

Often, economic issues like jobs are inherently associated with politics as these lend themselves to different opinions based on which politicians seek votes. In the US, jobs for locals was one of the dominant issues during the 2016 presidential election.

For the Shiv Sena, the son-of-he-soil issue has always been its central poll plank right since its foundation in 1966. During the initial years, the Sena gave voice to grievances of the locals, who felt marginalised in Mumbai, as job seekers from across the country began coming to the city.

To counter this, the Sena under Bal Thackeray’s leadership began targeting south Indians with the slogan, Uthao lungi, bajao pungi.

Soon, the outfit snatched the trade unions’ hold over the community and began reaping electoral benefits as it drew support from the locals who felt represented by the new party. The party grew in Mumbai, Thane and Nashik, but its real growth came only post-1990s when the Sena rode the Hindutva bandwagon.

Contrast this with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), another outfit born out of the Shiv Sena in 2006. The same discourse hasn’t helped the MNS. Its performance, post 2009, when it won 13 seats in the state assembly polls – its best performance in any elections - has been ebbing constantly.

With the economic slowdown becoming more stark, the Reserve Bank of India has slashed its gross domestic product (GDP) projections for the country to 6.1 per cent from 6.9 per cent for 2019-20 in its August review. The automobile sector, which provides direct and indirect employment on a large scale, and has a major presence in Maharashtra, is also grappling with the slowdown amidst lowest vehicles sales in 19 years.

As per a 2008 GR (Government Resolution), industries availing tax sops in Maharashtra are mandated to reserve 80 per cent non-supervisory and 50 per cent supervisory jobs. However, there has been poor implementation since the beginning with no clear framework to monitor it.

This issue was re-ignited after the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh tabled a bill in 2018 to reserve jobs for locals, making it compulsory for private firms to employ 70 per cent locals. Recently, the Andhra Pradesh assembly passed a law reserving 75 per cent private jobs for locals. This was followed by the Goa government’s announcement reserving 80 per cent jobs in industrial units availing state subsidies.