Mumbai cops allow Jarange to stage protest at Azad Maidan on Aug 29

Mumbai, Aug 27 (PTI) Police on Wednesday allowed Maratha quota movement leader Manoj Jarange to stage a peaceful protest at Azad Maidan in Mumbai on August 29, restricting the number of supporters at the venue to 5,000, an official said.

The permission has been granted in accordance with the guidelines of the Bombay High Court, the official said.

As per the guidelines, the number of protesters should not exceed 5,000, he said.

The High Court on Tuesday stated that Jarange cannot hold a protest without prior permission from the authorities and cited the law and order situation in Mumbai during the Ganesh festival.

A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne noted that the government can decide whether to offer an alternative place at Kharghar in Navi Mumbai to the respondent (Jarange) to hold a peaceful protest so that the tempo of life in Mumbai is not disturbed.

Earlier in the day, Jarange set out for Mumbai from Jalna with hundreds of his supporters.

Reacting to the permission granted by Mumbai Police, Jarange said the government should grant a quota to Marathas under the OBC category in a single day.

"If the permission is granted for a single day, then the government should give us a quota in one day. We will stop the agitation. I will sit for the indefinite hunger strike complying with the guidelines," he told reporters in Jalna. PTI DC AW NSK