Quota stir: BJP questions Sharad Pawar's contribution to Maratha welfare; Sule faces protests

Mumbai, Aug 31 (PTI) With quota leader Manoj Jarange amplifying his criticism of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the BJP on Sunday targeted veteran politician Sharad Pawar and accused him of failing to take steps for the welfare of the Maratha community when he was in power. The BJP lashed out at the NCP (SP) chief a day after he said that a Constitutional amendment was necessary to lift the "52 per cent ceiling" on quotas placed by the Supreme Court.

On Sunday, Pawar's daughter and NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule faced the ire of Maratha protesters at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai after she visited the venue of the demonstration by Jarange, who has been fasting since Friday.

The protesters blocked Sule's car and raised slogans against her father and former Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.

After Sule was mobbed, BJP MLC Praveen Darekar stated that many Maratha youths were unhappy with the stand taken by Sharad Pawar on the Maratha quota issue.

He stated that Pawar was part of the erstwhile state and Central governments for several years, “but he did not take any concrete decision regarding reservation for Marathas in educational institutions and government jobs”.

"Some of these youths might have expressed their feelings against Pawar when his daughter and Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule visited the ongoing protest of Jarange at Azad Maidan," Darekar told a news channel.

Citing 'kunbi'- an agrarian community- antecedents of Marathas, Jarange has been demanding the reservation for the community under the OBC category, which is stridently opposed by backward classes.

Taking a swipe at Pawar, BJP leader and minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil asked why the veteran politician, who has been chief minister of Maharashtra four times and Union minister for a decade, had not taken any steps earlier.

Vikhe Patil heads a cabinet sub-committee on issues related to the Maratha community's demand for reservation and its social, educational, and economic conditions.

"Pawar now talks of amending the Constitution to resolve the Maratha quota issue. Why didn't he raise this before the Mandal Commission or when he was in power? He never ensured the inclusion of Marathas then. He should clarify whether Marathas can get a reservation under OBCs (category) or not, instead of offering sermons now," Vikhe Patil said.

Pawar on Saturday said the Supreme Court had placed a ceiling of 52 per cent on overall reservations, and a constitutional amendment was necessary (to raise it).

The Supreme Court had imposed a 52 per cent cap on reservations, but the court ratified a 72 per cent quota in Tamil Nadu, he added.

Pawar further said he has been holding discussions with other MPs on the need for a Constitutional amendment.

Darekar, meanwhile, alleged that Pawar never acted in favour of the Maratha community when he was in power.

"Be it the Mandal Commission that offered reservations to OBCs or any other decisions, Pawar could have acted in the interest of the Maratha community when he was in power, but it never happened. Sule is meeting people when she has no Constitutional power to find a solution. Maybe because of this frustration, some Marathi youth confronted her at Azad Maidan," he added. PTI ND MR NSK