Both NCP factions could bear the brunt of intensifying Maratha agitation

Policemen have been deployed outside the residences of ruling party leaders in Maharashtra following incidents of arson and stone-pelting during the Maratha reservation agitation. The violence is unusual for the protests, which have previously been limited to road blockages and shouting slogans. The NCP, a Maratha-dominated party, is particularly concerned about a possible backlash, as young Marathas are angry that politicians who gained support from the community have not done enough on the reservation issue. The agitation has intensified due to this frustration.

A day after the incidents of arson and stone-pelting on politicians’ houses and offices during the Maratha reservation agitation, policemen were deployed outside the residences, especially those belonging to ruling party leaders. Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, who heads one faction of the NCP, was one of them.

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On Friday, the bungalows of two sitting NCP MLAs Prakash Solanke (Ajit Pawar faction) and Sandeep Kshirsagar (Sharad Pawar faction) in Beed district were set on fire. Former NCP minister Jaydutt Kshirsagar’s office was also torched while protestors pelted stones on BJP MLA Prashant Bamb’s office and a Shiv Sena office in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district. Solanke is a Maratha.

The violence, which heated up on Friday, was unusual by the standards of Maratha protests, which have so far been limited to blocking roads, shouting slogans against politicians and occasionally trying to disrupt public functions. Where has so much anger come from?

While all political parties are facing the brunt, the NCP, especially the faction led by Ajit Pawar, is extra worried about a possible backlash. The NCP is considered a Maratha-dominated party, and there is resentment among young Marathas that the politicians who made it big with the support of the community have not done anything for them on the reservation issue after the Supreme Court quashed their quota in 2021.

NCP chief Sharad Pawar is considered to be the tallest Maratha leader while his nephew Ajit also has a large following among Marathas, especially in western Maharashtra. This is the reason the agitation has intensified this time, with Maratha community members going berserk at some places. The community is also worried about the worsening health condition of Manoj Jarange-Patil, the face of the agitation, after the resumption of his indefinite hunger strike.

Mansing Pawar, who was among the first lot of coordinators behind peaceful Maratha rallies held in 2017, said that the anger was bound to erupt, given the unfulfilled commitments. “Even after 50 days, there is no solution,” he said. “The outrage will affect the Maratha leadership and also the three ruling parties—the Shiv Sena, BJP and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction.”

Mansing Pawar also stressed that the NCP had been completely exposed. “It was (Sharad) Pawar saheb who increased the quota for OBC reservation (following the Mandal Commission report) because he took the community for granted in the past,” he said. “This is the reason slogans were raised against him when he went to meet Jarange-Patil in the first week of September. Now the youth has also started talking against Ajit Pawar.”

According to political observer Dr Kumar Saptarshi, Maratha youths have realised that they have been cheated by their own leaders. “There is this conflict between poor Marathas and rich Marathas,” he said. “Although Marathas have been ruling the state for so long, the ground reality is different. The power has remained with influential Marathas while those in agriculture are facing a lot of trouble. In fact, in rural parts, Marathas are worse off than Dalits. This is leading to violence.” Significantly, the NCP is seen as a party propped up by established Marathas in rural Maharashtra.

According to political commentator and former political science professor at Mumbai University Surendra Jondhale, there is a complete disconnect today between the Maratha leadership and masses. “The feeling that established Maratha leaders have done nothing for their own community for so many years is palpable,” he said. “Maratha politicians built educational and other institutes although youth from the community could not study there or get jobs. In politics too, fresh faces did not have much of a chance, as established leaders promoted their own dynasties. So for Maratha youth from the rural parts, there are no jobs, no education, and no political space too,” said Jondhale, explaining the reason behind the venting of anger against the Maratha leadership.

A section of the community has over the decades retained its clout in Maharashtra’s politics. Over 60 per cent of chief ministers of the state have been from the Maratha community, and the community has had fair representation in the cabinet and state assembly as well. From the first chief minister Yashwantrao Chavan to the current CM Eknath Shinde, the state has had 12 Maratha chief ministers, with some of them serving multiple times.

The issue of Maratha violence is expected to be discussed in the weekly meeting of all NCP MLAs at Ajit Pawar’s official bungalow Devagiri on Tuesday evening. “We see it as a bad sign for us because of our identity and the dominance of the NCP in Maratha-dominated areas,” said a senior NCP leader. “This is happening at a time when we all decided to join the government under the leadership of Ajit Dada. If reservation is not taken care of immediately, we will be at the receiving end.”

With inputs from Yogesh Joshi