Maratha quotas: Stage set for Maha Legislature Special Session on Feb 20

Mumbai, Feb 19 (IANS) The state government has convened a one-day Special Session of Maharashtra Legislature on Tuesday (February 20) which could be game-changer for the long-pending issue of giving reservation to the Maratha community, officials said here on Monday.  

The MahaYuti government Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar have assured several times in the past -- and reiterated on Monday in Pune -- that they are committed to give quotas to the Marathas without affecting the reservation of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

The Special Session of Legislature comes barely three days after the Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission (MSBCC) Chairman, retired Justice Sunil Shukre submitted its comprehensive report ascertaining the backwardness of the Marathas, the CM on Friday (February 16).

Shinde will table the report -- which surveyed the social, economic and educational backwardness of the Marathas -- before the state cabinet, and then it will be debated in the Legislature.

The big challenge for the government is to fulfil its promises – of giving the Maratha quotas without disturbing the existing OBCs reservation -- making it a tricky proposition, political sources said.

Shivba Sanghatana leader Manoj Jarange-Patil, who is on the 10th day of his indefinite hunger strike, said today (Monday) that what the community desires is "actual quotas and not just empty assurances" including the demand of 'Sage-Soyare' (family bloodline).

"Tomorrow is the last day of the ultimatum… we shall see the outcome in the Special Session of Legislature before deciding our next course of action," warned Jarange-Patil at his native village, Antaravali-Sarati in Jalna district.

The MSBCC's latest survey covered over 2.25 crore families, making it the biggest exercise of its kind anywhere in the country, and involved between three-four lakh officials toiling across the state.

Simultaneously, the state government went on a deep dive search for 'Kunbi-Maratha' and 'Maratha-Kunbi' records and according to Jarange-Patil, more than 57 lakh records have been found so far, in the past nearly three months, kindling hope among the Marathas.

Despite the CM's assurances, currently, all major OBC groups are opposed to including the Marathas in the OBCs quotas, which a MahaYuti Minister Chhagan Bhujbal has termed as systematic 'Kunbi-isation' of the Maratha community and giving them a backdoor entry to OBC reservation.

--IANS

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