State accepts demand of Maratha agitators

The Maharashtra government has announced that Marathas in central Maharashtra will be issued Kunbi caste certificates to enable them to receive reservation benefits under the OBC category. This comes after protests erupted following a lathi charge on Maratha demonstrators. A committee has been formed to verify records and issue the certificates. The decision may lead to demands for blanket issuance of Kunbi certification to all Marathas, potentially causing problems for the ruling alliance. The government is also working to restore the reservation that was quashed by the Supreme Court in 2021.

Mumbai: Under fire after the lathi charge on Maratha demonstrators at Jalna last Friday, the state government on Wednesday announced that Marathas in the central Maharashtra region would be issued Kunbi caste certificates if they produced documents from the Nizam era where they were mentioned as Kunbis. This will enable Marathas to get benefits of reservation under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category. The government has also constituted a committee under a retired judge to expedite the process of verifying records and issuing the certificates.

Mumbai, India – Sept 03, 2023: Sakal Martha Samaj activists stage a protest opp plaza in Dadar against the Jalna administration over the alleged lathi charge on protestor’s, at Dadar, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, Sept 03, 2023. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo)

The decision was announced by chief minister Eknath Shinde after a marathon cabinet meeting to discuss the demands of Maratha activist Manoj Jarange-Patil, who has been on a hunger strike in Jalna district since August 29. Following the police lathi charge at his hunger strike site last Friday, protests by the politically influential Maratha community—which accounts for over 32% of the state population—erupted across the state.

In the confidential meeting, which went on for over two hours, various aspects related to reservation were deliberated on. Reportedly, even senior officials were not allowed to attend, and it was also decided that except the chief minister and the two deputy chief ministers, no other minister would speak on the issue.

Shinde, addressing the media in the evening, announced that Maratha community members who could produce records from the Nizam rule to show that they were Kunbis would be issued Kunbi caste certificates, which would grant them reservation benefits in the OBC category. “The committee under retired judge Sandeep Shinde will be submitted in one month,” he said. “The government resolution related to the terms of reference will be issued today.”

Jarange-Patil has been demanding that Marathas be allocated Kunbi caste certificates on the basis of the records that they have to prove their caste. Kunbis get reservation in the OBC category while Marathas come under the open category. The activist and some Maratha outfits have claimed that until Nizam rule was dismantled in September 1948 in central Maharashtra, the Marathas were considered Kunbis. The outfits also argued that Marathas in neighbouring Telangana (which was also under Nizam rule) get reservation in the OBC category.

Shinde said that the cabinet had decided to concede to the demand and issue Kunbi certificates to the community. “Community members who have Nizam-era certificates to prove their caste will be issued fresh certificates,” he said. “The committee under the retired judge will check the revenue and educational records to enable the issuance of the certificates. I appeal to Jarange-Patil to call off his hunger strike, as we have conceded his demand.”

Shinde said he was personally speaking to his counterpart from Telangana for help in collating Nizam-era records. “Our officials will also get in touch with Telangana officials to get the records,” he said.

The CM said that his government was “committed” to restoring the reservation quashed by the Supreme Court in 2021. “The reservation given by the then Fadnavis government in 2018 was upheld by the Bombay high court but was later quashed by the apex court,” he said. “We have appointed a task force with senior counsels like Harish Salve to fight the legal battle. A dedicated commission is taking such steps as will stand up to legal scrutiny in order to restore the reservation.”

The beleaguered CM went on to declare his solidarity with the community yet again, and emphasised that his government had taken action against the police officers responsible for the lathi charge and that deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had apologised for it. “We are with the Maratha community,” he declared.

The decision, however, could create a new set of problems for the ruling alliance. Maratha outfits across the state could demand blanket issuance of Kunbi certification to all Marathas, like existing castes in the OBC category have. Indeed, Jarange-Patil demanded that the government take “a liberal stand on the issuance of certificates without insisting on family tree records to determine the caste”. The activist said he would take a final call on his hunger strike at 11 am on Thursday after a discussion with his colleagues.

Meanwhile, OBC Mahasangh president Baban Taywade announced that they would hold a statewide protest if the government announced blanket reservation to Marathas in the OBC category. “There is no scientific ground to announce Marathas as Kunbis, and barring a few examples, there are no such records,” he said. In the cabinet meeting, food and civil supplies minister and OBC face Chhagan Bhujbal said that the OBC quota should not be disturbed.