The Maratha protest for reservation in government jobs and education, among other things, intensified on Tuesday with the agitators turning violent and shaving their head to show their anger at the state government’s failure to fulfill the promises.
Maratha Kranti Morcha workers set a truck ablaze in Aurangabad’s Gangapur during their protest after calling for a statewide Bandh. Earlier in the day they blocked the Aurangabad-Pune highway, making it difficult for the vehicles to pass through.
Their demands are
- Reservation for Maratha community in govt jobs & education
- Loan waiver for farmers and higher Minimum Support Price for Maratha farmers
- Changes in the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act
- Death sentence for rapists of the Maratha girl in Ahmednagar
- Reservations for the community in government jobs and education
The agitation, turned tragic on Monday after a protestor, Kakasaheb Shinde, a resident of Kaygaon village jumped to his death in Godavari river. Following the death of the youth, Maratha Kranti Morcha workers vandalised a bus on the Aurangabad-Pune highway and also blocked the Mumbai-Pune highway.
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Yogesh Shirke, a protestor alleged that the police provoked the youth to take the extreme step. “When we came to take ‘Jal Samadhi’, the police started provoking us and challenged us to take samadhi “if we actually have Maratha blood running through our veins”,” Shirke told ANI.
He further threatened that all of them would take ‘Jal Samadhi’ if their demands are not met. “Our brothers were carrying out a peaceful protest as the government hasn’t fulfilled even a single of our 30 demands. All of us would take ‘Jal Samadhi’ if the Chief Minister (Devendra Fadnavis) does not answer and our demands are not met,” he added.
Another protestor said that the government is not taking their protest or the Maratha reservation seriously.
“The government didn’t take a reservation for Maratha community seriously; I want the Chief Minister to resign,” said Ganesh Rao. “The government has only made fun of these protests,” said Gyaneshwar Balkrishna Rawande.
Notably, over a million devotees are presently gathered in Pandharpur in Solapur District at the famed temple of Lord Vitthal and his consort Rukmini.
The incident came a day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis bowed out from performing the customary official puja at the Pandharpur Temple on the auspicious ‘Ashadi Ekadashi’ day.
Fadnavis decided against leading the puja celebrations scheduled for Monday, at the last minute on Sunday, following widespread protests and threats by various Maratha community associations and groups demanding reservations for the community. India Today had reported that Maratha leaders had threatened that they would not allow the CM to perform the pooja at Pandharpur.
(with ANI inputs)
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