CM Fadnavis should hold dialogue with Jarange, says Raut

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday said Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis should hold dialogue with Maratha quota movement leader Manoj Jarange, and resolve the reservation issue with patience.

Talking to reporters, Raut noted that the BJP-led government had held talks with Jarange before the Lok Sabha polls.

Jarange, who has been demanding a quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, on Wednesday set out for Mumbai from his native Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district. The 43-year-old activist has announced an indefinite fast at Azad Maidan in the state capital from August 29 to press his demand.

"The CM should hold dialogue with Manoj Jarange, because this is not a simple protest. If Marathi manoos (native Maharashtrians) is coming to Mumbai in lakhs, then you have to hold straight dialogue with them," Raut said.

"The Mahayuti government and Devendra Fadnavis should address this issue patiently, and stay true to their word," he adde.

It has been the Shiv Sena (UBT)'s clear stand that the Marathi people have the right over Mumbai and they should not be stopped from coming to the state capital, said the Rajya Sabha MP.

If people can stage agitations for pigeons and the government permits them, then the Marathi people too have the right to protest for their demands, Raut said.

"It is necessary that the CM holds dialogue with the protesters. The government also needs to take care of law and order during the Ganesh festival," he added.

Maharashtra is being perceived as a state with fissures between castes and sub-castes nowadays, Raut said, claiming that while Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray united Maharashtrians, efforts were made to undo that unity over the last ten years.

For power, Fadnavis was doing politics to ensure that the unity of Marathi people does not last, he alleged.

Taking a dig at the BJP, Raut said it was natural for Jarange to place his demands before the state government, and "not before (US President) Donald Trump." PTI PR NP KRK