Jarange-Patil cracks whip on Maha parties & politicians, flexes muscles in Solapur

Solapur (Maharashtra), Aug 7 (IANS) Cracking the whip on all political parties, Shivba Sanghatana leader Manoj Jarange-Patil called upon his followers to resolve and defeat all those who are against Maratha quotas in the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections, here on Wednesday.

Addressing a mammoth rally during his ongoing Peace March, Jarange-Patil – with or without taking names - targeted Nationalist Congress Party (SP) President Sharad Pawar, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, MP Narayan Rane and legislator Pravin Darekar, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Minister Chhagan Bhujbal, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena President Raj Thackeray and others.

“Those leaders who have made it big in life and politics are now speaking against the reservation for the poor Marathas. The community people have now seen through this. One Maratha son (referring to himself) has started exposing them and the people are with him,” thundered Jarange-Patil.

“However, we are not turning back… I will make the cause of my caste bigger, the community people greater, but these so-called political leaders of the Marathas are only going to make their parties and leaders bigger,” said the Shivba Sanghatana chief.

He also dared them that if they didn’t want to give quotas to Marathas, then speak out against the reservations demanded by Dhangars and other communities rather than talking against the interests of their own (Maratha) community.

Referring to certain BJP leaders’ objections to his criticism of Fadnavis, Jarange-Patil countered: “Why not speak against your leader… Is he your father, when did he become your father? If you think so then the Marathas will not vote for you,” declared Jarange-Patil amid repeated rounds of applause and cheers from the huge gathering.

He said that one leader is facing allegations of Rs 70,000 crore scams (Ajit Pawar), and another campaigned in the heavy downpour to get votes for his party (Sharad Pawar), “but the Marathas will soak in the rains to get quotas for all.”

Refuting Rane’s contentions, Jarange-Patil denied ever saying that he warned him (Rane) not to dare come to Marathwada or that he would ‘see him’ (dekh lenge) then but was only concerned about and fighting for a year to get quota for the Marathas.

Jarange-Patil also rubbished Raj Thackeray’s claims on August 5 that there’s no need for any quotas while demanding 100 per cent jobs for local Maharashtrians and having advised the Shivba Sanghatana leader that the state government will never give the Maratha quotas.

“Raj Thackeray had said that he would go to Mumbai and consult his experts on the issue… Then how can he make such a claim that he tried to talk me out of the quotas’ demand… He is a front-man trying for a cover-up operation,” Jarange-Patil claimed.

He again alleged ‘conspiracies being hatched’ to deny the quotas to the Marathas, and failing which, the community would put candidates in all the 288 state assembly seats and also work to defeat the leaders of all other parties in the government and opposition.

“I will clean the slate of all those who are anti-Maratha quotas and will not rest till this is given…from the OBCs. We will not sit at home or continue with any party without getting our dues. We will do everything peacefully,” declared Jarange-Patil.

He reiterated that unless the reservation is given, then the only option left for the Marathas would be to grab power and then resolve all the problems of the community.