Shinde government indifferent towards Maratha quota demand: Ex-minister Jayant Patil

Mumbai, Nov 7 (PTI) Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction)'s Maharashtra unit president Jayant Patil on Tuesday accused the Eknath Shinde-led government of being indifferent to the cause of Maratha reservation.

Talking to reporters here, Patil said the three-party coalition government must treat the demand for reservation to the Maratha community in jobs and education as a serious issue and take it to logical conclusion.

“The government is indifferent to the Maratha reservation issue,” the former state minister alleged.

He claimed Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar speak in different voices on the emotive issue which shows all the three parties in the ruling coalition are not on the same page on Maratha quota.

The NCP's firm stand is that Marathas should get reservation without disturbing the existing quota for other deprived sections of society, said the former finance minister.

Meanwhile, OBC leader Prakash Shendge met Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal here and opposed any “backdoor entry” of Marathas into the Other Backward Classes category by giving them Kunbi caste certificates, which will allow them to avail quota benefits.

Such a move will be injustice to other communities and face protests from OBC groups, Shendge warned.

The latest round of agitation in support of quota for Maratha community members saw violence in different parts of the state recently. Quota activist Manoj Jarange called off his indefinite hunger strike after nine days last week and asked the government to resolve the issue in two months.

Marathas, who constitute more than 30 per cent of Maharashtra's population, have been for long demanding reservation in education and government jobs. PTI PR RSY