Over 1,500 cops deployed at Mumbai's Azad Maidan in view of Maratha quota protest

Mumbai: The Mumbai police on Thursday deployed over 1,500 of its personnel at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai to maintain law and order situation in view of activist Manoj Jarange's indefinite fast to press for the Maratha reservation demand, officials said.

Jarange, 43, has earlier announced that he would launch an indefinite fast at the Azad Maidan from August 29. He along with thousands of supporters left his native Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district on August 26. On Thursday morning, he reached Shivneri fort, the birthplace of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and later proceeded to Mumbai.

He has been demanding that all Marathas be recognised as Kunbis – an agrarian caste included in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category – which will make them eligible for reservation in government jobs and education.

In view of the protest, the police have put in place security arrangements at the Azad Maidan. They expect more than 20,000 protesters in south Mumbai, an official said.

Besides the local police, one company each of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and Maharashtra Security Force (MSF) are also deployed at the protest venue and its surrounding areas to avoid any untoward incident, he said.

Some units of the central forces that are in Mumbai to provide security during the ongoing Ganesh festival, have been diverted for the Maratha quota protest, the official said.

Even as the protest is set to begin from Friday, protesters from all over the state have started gathering at the Azad Maidan. The police have granted permission to Jarange to stage his agitation there only for a day, with the number of protesters not exceeding 5,000.