Maratha rebels plan protest outside houses of MPs, MLAs

Pune: The Maratha Kranti Morcha (MKM) has decided to change its modus operandi and will henceforth protest in front of the houses of MPs and MLAs. The first such protest will be held in front of the residence of parliamentary affairs minister and Pune’s guardian minister, Girish Bapat. The outfit has also appealed to participants not to break laws or inflict self-harm.

The organisers of MKM said, “We are changing our strategy of protests. Now, we will hold protest rallies in front of the houses of MPs and MLAs instead of on roads.”

Shantaram Kunjir, city coordinator of MKM, in Pune on Tuesday said, “Earlier, we organised protest rallies across the city that disrupted city life. But now, we will protest outside the houses of people’s representatives like MPs and MLAs.”

“We are starting this by protesting outside the house of Mr Bapat, state cabinet minister for food, civil supplies and consumer protection; food and drugs administration; and parliamentary affairs on August 2. We will also protest in front of the house of Vandana Chavan, MP, Rajya Sabha, on the same day. After our protests, they will follow up on the issue,” he said.

Rajendra Kondhare, another member of MKM, said, “We also want the youths not to commit suicide or even inflict self-harm as that will not lead us anywhere. Protesters should not take the law into their own hands, and we should continue peaceful protest marches as we did earlier.”

MKM leaders also asked the state government not to book Maratha youths on serious charges like attempt to murder.