Maratha quota protest: Mumbai police receive application seeking extension for another day

Mumbai, Aug 29 (PTI) The Mumbai police on Saturday received an application to allow activist Manoj Jarange’s Maratha quota agitation at the Azad Maidan for another day, officials said.

With the deadline for using the ground as the venue for Jarange’s hunger strike for the second day ending by 6 pm, an application seeking an extension was submitted to the Azad Maidan police station, they said.

The request is being considered positively, an official said, adding that a decision on it would be taken in some time.

The activist, who started the indefinite fast on Friday morning, was initially permitted to occupy the ground only for a day.

As per the Bombay High Court directive, the permission ended at 6 pm, but the organisers secured an extension for a second day.

As thousands of Jarange's supporters have arrived in south Mumbai, the road traffic in the area has been nearly crippled.

The activist 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. PTI DC NR