Eknath Shinde reaches out to Jarange-Patil, updates him on steps planned by govt

Manoj Jarange-Patil later declared that he will have water for two days following a request from Shahu Maharaj, a descendant of Shivaji

MUMBAI: Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday reached out to Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil over a phone call to apprise him of the steps being taken by the state government for Maratha reservation and urge him to take care of his health.

Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde spoke to Manoj Jarange-Patil for about 20 minutes (ANI FILE PHOTO)

Shinde’s 20-minute phone call on Tuesday with Jarange-Patil came hours ahead of the state cabinet’s meeting that is expected to discuss the ongoing reservation agitation that saw attacks on office and residential premises of at least three lawmakers in Beed and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar districts.

“Jarange Patil was told by the CM that the decision related to issuing Kunbi certificates to Marathas would be taken in the cabinet after accepting the preliminary report submitted by Sandeep Shinde committee,” a statement by the chief minister’s office said.

“The state government has filed a curative petition in the Supreme Court to solve the reservation issue legally and the top court has agreed to hear it, the activist was told by the CM. He was told that the government was committed to the sustainable reservation that would stand the legal scrutiny,” a statement issued by the CMO has stated.

The chief minister also told the activist to take care of his health and at his request, Jarange-Patil had a glass of water.

But Jarange-Patil has refused to pause his agitation for now.

At a media briefing later, Jarange-Patil said that he would take water for the next two days at the request of Shahu Maharaj, who is a descendant of King Shivaji. But he warned that if the government fails to take a decision on including all Marathas under the OBC category by giving them Kunbi caste certificates, he would stop taking water after two days.

He also demanded that the government convene a special session to discuss the Maratha reservation demand.

A delegation of Maharashtra ministers is expected to meet the activist or his representatives in the evening as part of the government’s outreach pitch.

Patil is leading the campaign to give Kunbi certificates to all Marathas to enable the community to get the quota. Kunbi, a sub-Maratha caste, has a quota in government jobs and education under the OBC category.