Jarange reaches Mumbai ahead of Maratha quota protest

Mumbai: Maratha quota agitation leader Manoj Jarange reached Mumbai Friday morning, hours ahead of his protest at Azad Maidan in the city.

Accompanied by hundreds of vehicles, Jarange, who began his march from his village in Jalna district on Wednesday, was welcomed at Vashi by supporters as he entered Mumbai.

Thousands of his supporters have already reached Mumbai.

Jarange left along with his supporters from Antarwali Sarati village, located over 400 km from Mumbai, to launch a fresh hunger strike.

The 43-year-old has been demanding a 10 per cent quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.

Jarange has said his supporters would protest peacefully and not disrupt the ongoing Ganesh festival.

He has been demanding that all Marathas be recognised as Kunbis – an agrarian caste included in the OBC category – which will make them eligible for reservation in government jobs and education.

The Jalna police allowed Jarange and his supporters to proceed with their march after imposing 40 conditions, directing them to avoid any law-and-order situations, not to cause disruptions to the movement of vehicles and desist from avoiding “objectionable” slogans.

Mumbai police have allowed Jarange permission to stage peaceful protests at Azad Maidan on August 29 between 9 am to 6 pm. At 6 p.m., all protesters will have to leave the site, police said.

Police also stipulated that only five vehicles of protesters can head to Azad Maidan and the number of protesters there should not cross 5,000.

Over 1,500 Mumbai police personnel have been deployed at Azad Maidan to maintain law and order ahead of Jarange's agitation, officials said.

Security has also been beefed up at the nearby Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus where quota agitation supporters have arrived from Maharashtra's hinterlands, the railway police said.