Maratha reservation row in the last few days has become a massive issue for the state government to deal with. However, the Eknath Shinde-led government has ensured justice and moving forward the Deputy Chief Minister on Saturday stressed that the reservation for the Maratha community will not eat into the existing quota for Other Backward Classes (OBCs). The major development came after Fadnavis met protesters from the OBC communities at Samvidhan Square and gave them assurance. Earlier this month, the Maratha quota row took centre stage with the hunger strike of Maratha activist Manoj Jarange. Following this, protests in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nagpur and Chandrapur were organised by OBC outfits against the possible inclusion of the Maratha community in the OBC category.
During the meeting with the protesters from the OBC communities, the Deputy CM said that the Maharashtra government would not let the OBC quota get divided further or reduced under any circumstances.
Fadnavis over Maratha reservation row
"The main demand of the Maratha community is about the 12-13 percent reservation given to them when I was chief minister. They want that reservation back," Fadnavis told the gathering.
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Fadnavis further informed that the state government under the leadership of CM Eknath Shinde has started work on a review petition to be filed in the Supreme Court (which had in 2021 set aside the reservation granted to the Maratha community in government jobs and educational institutions), he said.
'State government will not allow such a conflict to arise' says Fadnavis
The government is seeking to restore the reservation for the Maratha community which is different from the OBC quota, Fadnavis stressed. "A situation where one community is pitted against another community is not good for the social fabric of the state," he said, adding that the state government will not allow such a conflict to arise.
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Speaking to reporters, Fadnavis said the Eknath Shinde government "has taken a clear stand about not touching, reducing or sharing the OBC quota." "Hence, we request the OBC community to withdraw their agitation," he said.
