Maharashtra govt, Centre must announce Maratha quota immediately: Cong leader Sapkal

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) The BJP-led governments in Maharashtra and at the Centre must immediately announce reservations for the Maratha community by scrapping the 50 per cent upper limit on such quotas, senior Congress leader Harshwardhan Sapkal said on Thursday.

Addressing a press conference, the Maharashtra Congress chief said the Maratha reservation issue can be resolved in "five minutes" if the government so wishes.

"The BJP and Devendra Fadnavis must uphold Rajdharma and honour the promises given to the community. With a huge majority in Maharashtra and the BJP in power at the Centre, they should go to Delhi and remove the 50 per cent cap on reservations," Sapkal said.

"The Congress-NCP government had granted reservation to Marathas. Even when the resolution was passed in the Assembly during the BJP-led government's tenure, the Congress supported it. Devendra Fadnavis had thundered that Maratha quota would be given within seven days of (BJP) coming to power. What happened to that promise," he questioned.

Fadnavis had also assured reservation for the Dhangar community in the very first cabinet meeting but nothing came of it, Sapkal added.

Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde took an oath in front of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Navi Mumbai amid celebrations on the quota issue, Sapkal pointed out.

"What came of that? The three parties in power today were in power even then. They are answerable to people," he said.

Sapkal accused the BJP of adopting "divide and rule" tactics like the British, adding that caste-based census was the only effective way to address reservation issues.

"Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has already made it clear in the Lok Sabha that caste census is the only remedy. Telangana and Karnataka have conducted it under Congress rule. If the BJP government has the will, it should do the same and resolve the Maratha reservation issue," Sapkal asserted.

He also slammed the state government for giving one-day permission to Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange for a stir along with supporters in Mumbai.

"This is laughable. The agitation was announced three months ago. What was the government sleeping all this time?" he asked.

Jarange and his supporters were set to reach the outskirts of Mumbai on Thursday evening ahead of his indefinite hunger strike for reservations for the Maratha community, while the Maharashtra government said it was ready for talks.

Jarange is set to launch his stir at Azad Maidan in the southern part of the metropolis from Friday. PTI MR BNM