Activist Manoj Jarange Sets Mumbai Protest Deadline, Devendra Fadnavis Reaches Out

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday reached out to fasting Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, who has warned of marching to Mumbai if the government fails to act on his demand for Kunbi (OBC) caste certificates for all eligible Marathas by September 12.

Fadnavis said the government is open to discuss legally viable demands that are constitutionally valid, and not violative of the Supreme Court's orders. On the second day of the indefinite hunger strike in Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, Jarange targeted Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, who belongs to the Maratha community, rebel Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Jadhav, and state minister Sanjay Shirsat over a farmer event being held in Parbhani city in the Marathwada region.

Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Fadnavis said representatives of the government are attending the Parbhani event to discuss the demands of demonstrators. "Earlier also we found a way to address their issues, and we are going forward to resolve their demands.

Similarly, Eknath Shinde is also very sensitive to these issues from the very beginning," he said. The chief minister underlined the government's commitment to discuss and resolve legally viable demands that are constitutionally valid, and not violative of the Supreme Court's orders.

Earlier in the day, reacting to the Parbhani event, Jarange questioned the need to hold the programme, which he said was arranged to mock the Maratha community. Opposing the event, Jarange claimed he had sought an explanation from MP Jadhav, hinting at a strong reaction.

Targeting Shirsat, Jarange alleged that genuine caste certificates had been cancelled, causing hardship to members of the Maratha community. "Why are you bringing Shinde here to dance on our chests? Why hold this programme now in the name of farmers?

It could have been organised later," he asked. Jarange, who had held multiple fasts in the past, has been demanding that eligible Marathas be recognised as Kunbis, an agrarian community that enjoys reservation benefits in education and government jobs under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category.

"The Maharashtra government should declare all Marathas as Kunbi," the activist told reporters. Jarange said that if the government failed to accept the demands, he would march to Mumbai and intensify the agitation. A meeting of the Maratha community's core committee, led by him, would be held in Antarwali Sarati on September 12 to decide on a hunger strike in Mumbai.

"If the government accepts our demands by September 12, there will be no need to hold the proposed fast in Mumbai," the activist said.