Martha quota activist Jarange-Patil asks Shinde to clarify ₹500-crore payment claim

Jarange-Patil has been demanding that eligible Marathas be granted Kunbi certificates based on the records identified by the government.

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil on Tuesday sparked a political controversy by alleging that deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde had told a senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader that he had paid the activist ₹500 crore during his agitation for Maratha reservation two years ago.

Addressing a massive Dussehra rally in Beed, the Maratha quota activist also reiterated his resolve to march to Mumbai if the state government failed to fulfil his reservation demands within the three-month deadline he had set in September. (HT Archive)

Addressing a massive Dussehra rally at Narayangad, a prominent religious site associated with the Maratha community in Beed district, Jarange-Patil also reiterated his resolve to march to Mumbai if the state government failed to fulfil his reservation demands within the three-month deadline he had set in September.

‘Shinde should clarify’

“On the eighth day of my indefinite hunger strike at Antarwali Sarathi last month, some senior political leaders told me that Shinde had claimed to have paid money to me. I have evidence to substantiate my claim and can produce it at the appropriate time. I challenge Shinde saheb to address the matter at his Dussehra rally in Mumbai on Tuesday evening,” Jarange-Patil said.

The activist alleged that Shinde had made the claim during a conversation with a senior BJP leader and demanded a clarification on whether the deputy chief minister had misled the BJP leadership by invoking his name. “Shinde should clarify whether his claim that the money was paid to me through his son, MP Shrikant Shinde, was false,” he said.

The activist also accused the government of dragging its feet on issuing Kunbi caste certificates to eligible Marathas. Referring to a meeting of the cabinet subcommittee on Maratha reservation, headed by water resources minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, he alleged that the state government had decided to issue Kunbi certificates only where permitted under existing rules, without making any special concessions.

Jarange-Patil has been demanding that eligible Marathas be granted Kunbi certificates based on the 5.8 million Kunbi-related records identified by the government. Kunbis are classified as Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Maharashtra, and Marathas who establish their Kunbi ancestry can claim reservation benefits under the OBC category.

Reacting to the allegation, Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam challenged Jarange-Patil to identify the BJP leader. “I am happy that Jarange-Patil has spoken openly about it. Now, he should announce the name of the leader who told him about this. This could be an attempt to create a rift between the BJP and the Shiv Sena,” he said.