Maratha quota stir set to intensify from June 16

The agitation is set to begin on June 16. On Saturday, Sambhajiraje visited Kopardi village in Ahmednagar where a minor girl from the community was raped and brutally murdered in 2016, triggering a large-scale agitation for justice for the victim, along with their old demand of reservation.

The agitation for restoring the Maratha quota scrapped by the Supreme Court (SC) in May is likely to intensify in the coming days as groups and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati have begun mobilising the community. The agitation is set to begin on June 16. On Saturday, Sambhajiraje visited Kopardi village in Ahmednagar where a minor girl from the community was raped and brutally murdered in 2016, triggering a large-scale agitation for justice for the victim, along with their old demand of reservation. After visiting the village, Chhatrapati demanded formation of a special bench of the Bombay high court (HC) to complete the hearing in six months in order to provide justice to the affected family.

Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, Member of Parliament during his visit to Kopardi Village in Ahmednagar on June 12, 2021 (HT Photo)

He then visited residence of Kakasaheb Shinde, a 28-year old Maratha youth in Aurangabad district, who committed suicide by jumping into the Godavari river in July 2018. He was the first youth who committed suicide demanding reservation after which a few more youths from the community ended their lives for the demand. He also reiterated this announcement that Maratha outfits will start holding silent protests for reservation from June 16.

Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, a descendant of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji, has taken the lead for providing reservation to the community after the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act 2018, which was enacted by the state government to provide quota to the community, was quashed by the Supreme Court on May 5.

“Today I met the family. They want justice as the case is still pending before the high court. I want the state government to write to the high court to constitute a special bench and complete the hearing in six months. I will also personally speak to the chief minister on this,”Chhatrapati told reporters.

“As decided, we will start our agitations from June 16 demanding reservation for the Maratha community. We will be holding silent protests across 36 districts, which will start from Kolhapur,” Chhatrapati said.

The BJP MP had given an ultimatum till June 6 to the state government for taking decisions on the demands put forth by him, after which he announced to start silent protests on June 6. The demands include review and curative petitions in the Supreme Court against its order to scrap the quota, as well as a petition to the Centre for the reservation. Besides, he also had demanded other benefits such as hostel facilities and scholarships for the community’s students and revival of Sarthi — a Pune-based institute — to ensure educational and social well-being of Maratha youth.

On May 5, the Supreme Court quashed the 12% and 13% reservation given in education and jobs to Maratha community under the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018. The state government then appointed a committee of retired high court judge Dilip Bhosale to study the ruling and suggest a way forward. In its report, the committee has recommended the government to move a review petition in the SC challenging its verdict.

On July 13, 2016, a 14-year-old from Kopardi village in Ahmednagar district was raped and brutally murdered by three men from Dalit community. The incident had triggered silent protests by the Maratha community demanding justice to the family. The trial of the case was completed in a fast track court. The Ahmednagar sessions court has found all three accused guilty of the charges of rape and murder and pronounced death sentence on November 29, 2017