Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange to tour Maharashtra after Diwali

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Activist Manoj Jarange on Monday said he will set out on a tour of Maharashtra after the Diwali festival to meet Marathas and make them aware about the issue of reservation for the community.

Jarange was talking to reporters after NCP MLA Rohit Pawar met him at a private hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar where the quota activist is admitted since he ended his indefinite fast on November 2.

"The tour is not finalised yet. It will be finalised today. I will visit various regions of Maharashtra. There will be four steps of the tour and it may begin from the Vidarbha region," he said.

The activist earlier visited parts of western Maharashtra before he went on a hunger strike last month during the second phase of agitation for the Maratha quota.

Jarange has been demanding reservation for the Maratha community in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.

Earlier, an audio clip went viral in which Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal was purportedly heard saying, "It's a do or die situation for us (OBCs) and we must raise our voice." Asked about the clip, Jarange said, 'I am not going to say anything regarding him (Bhujbal). Our fight for the Maratha reservation is on peacefully and we will fight and win. No matter how much pressure is built, the agitation will not stop." "We will not focus on any criticism. We are asking for the right of Marathas," the activist said.

A delegation of the state government is likely to meet Jarange with a time-bound programme to resolve the Maratha quota issue.

To a query on this, Jarange said, "The delegation will come and I have been given a message about it from the CMO. If they want, I will write it (conditions for the time-bound resolution of the quota issue) for them here on a paper. They should just come and sign here." The Maharashtra cabinet last month decided that Kunbi caste certificates will be issued to those Marathas hailing from Marathwada region who possess revenue or education documents from the Nizam era that recognise them as Kunbis.

Kunbis, a community associated with agriculture, are grouped under the OBC category in Maharashtra and enjoy reservation benefits in education and government jobs.

Last week, the state government published an order asking officials concerned to issue fresh Kunbi caste certificates to eligible Maratha community members, paving the way for them to avail reservation benefits under the OBC category.