Maratha quota: Activist Jarange warns of fresh agitation from Oct 25 if demands are not met

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Saturday promised a fresh agitation from October 25 if demands of the community are not met.

Talking to reporters in Akhluj in Solapur district, he said his ultimatum to the Maharashtra government to provide reservations in jobs and educational institutions to the Maratha community is till October 24.

”I don’t know what the government is doing. Tomorrow we will hold a meeting in Antarwali village in Jalna to chart out our next course of action. The government will not be able to withstand a peaceful agitation by the Maratha community,” he asserted.

Jarange brought the Maratha quota stir on to the centre stage of the state’s politics after he started an indefinite hunger strike in Antarwali Sarati in Jalna on August 29.

Police action at the hunger strike venue on September 1, which led to injuries to several persons, ensured the stir made national headlines.

Jarange ended his hunger strike on September 14 after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde met him at the venue and assured that the government would take a positive stand on his demands.

Speaking at the time, Jarange had said agitators have given the state ”one month’s time” to ensure reservation for Marathas. He had then set October 24 as the deadline for the government to announce quota for the community.