Maratha quota activist asks Maharashtra government to learn lesson from Bangladesh
Mumbai: Saying that the anger for the reservation demand should be understood properly, Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil has said that the Maharashtra government should learn a lesson from the situation in Bangladesh. However, he ruled out the possibility of a Bangladesh like situation arising here saying Maharashtra is a peaceful state.
“Reservation is not a simple issue. Those who have witnessed poverty, those who have not been able to secure a job understand the true value of the reservation. The government should understand how fierce the anger can be for not getting the reservation and should learn a lesson from it,” Jarange said in Jalna.
But whatever happened in Bangladesh will not happen in Maharashtra as it is a peaceful state where people of all religions and castes live harmoniously, he added.
The activist also asked the Maratha community to prepare for the upcoming Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha polls, saying it has no option but to get political power if it wants reservation. He also expressed confidence that Marathas would come to power in the state, after the elections which are due in October.
“We have no option but to enter politics and come to power if we want to get reservation for the Maratha community. A decision regarding the political move would be made at a meeting to be held on August 29,” Jarange stated.
In February, the Maharashtra legislature passed a bill providing 10 per cent reservation to the Marathas, who comprise more than 30 per cent of the state's population, in education and government jobs under a separate category.
However, Maratha community members led by Jarange have been insisting on the influential caste’s inclusion in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. But, several OBC leaders have opposed it and demanded that their reservation should not be diluted.