Maharashtra govt sets up panel on issuing Kunbi certificates to Marathas as Jarange ends fast

Mumbai, Sep 2 (PTI) The Maharashtra government on Tuesday announced forming a committee to issue Kunbi caste certificates to Maratha community members with historical evidence of their Kunbi heritage, a social group classified as an Other Backward Class (OBC) in the state.

The government made this announcement in a resolution and it followed hectic talks between state ministers and activist Manoj Jarange, who was on a hunger strike at Mumbai's Azad Maidan to demand OBC reservation for Marathas. He later ended his five-day-old fast.

The Kunbi is a traditional farming community in the state and they have been included in the list of OBC category in Maharashtra in order to make them eligible for government reservations in jobs and education.

The government resolution (GR) issued by the social justice and special assistance department also mentioned about implementing the Hyderabad gazetteer.

"In accordance with the historical references contained in the Hyderabad gazetteer, a dedicated scrutiny process shall be conducted to verify documents and establish eligibility of persons from the Maratha community for Kunbi caste certificates. The committee shall ensure that every claim is assessed in a time-bound and transparent manner," said the GR.

Jarange has been long demanding that Marathas be recognised as Kunbis.

The committee announced to facilitate the issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas who are able to produce documentary evidence recognising them as Kunbis will be a village-level mechanism.

The panel will include gram sevak, talathi (revenue official), and assistant agriculture officer as members. These officials will verify the documentary claims of applicants from the Maratha community and submit their findings to the competent authority, according to the GR.

"The intention of the government is to provide Kunbi caste certification to all Maratha claimants who can demonstrate their lineage through official documents, thereby enabling them to avail of reservation benefits lawfully," it said.

The GR directed that persons from the Maratha community who or whose ancestors held agricultural land prior to November 21, 1961, or earlier, must produce evidence such as old land records or extracts from relevant registers. Based on these records, the designated committee would conduct local enquiries and certify the claimants accordingly.

In July 2023, the government had amended the Maharashtra Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, De-notified Tribes, Nomadic Tribes, Other Backward Classes and Special Backward Category (Regulation of Issuance and Verification of) Caste Certificate Rules, 2012 to allow scrutiny of archival documents.

Subsequently, in July 2024, the government had issued another resolution directing various departments to make available old revenue and land records for the verification process.

Tuesday's GR builds upon those directives by laying down the structure of village-level committees to ease certification for the Maratha community.

The Hyderabad gazetteer or gazette refers to an order issued in 1918 by the then-Nizam government of Hyderabad, which included parts of present-day Marathwada region in central Maharashtra. The gazetteer classifies certain communities, including some Maratha community groups, in the erstwhile Hyderabad State as Kunbis, who have been included in the OBC category in Maharashtra.

Implement of the Hyderabad gazetteer will effectively grant Kunbi status to Marathas of the Marathwada region, making them eligible for reservation in government jobs and education. PTI ND SKL RSY