Fast unto death across Maharashtra, says pro-Maratha quota activist

Despite his declining health, pro-Maratha quota campaigner Manoj Jarange Patil escalated his protest by urging community members to initiate a fast unto death

Despite his declining health, pro-Maratha quota campaigner Manoj Jarange Patil escalated his protest by urging community members to initiate a fast unto death across all villages in Maharashtra, starting from Sunday.

The Maratha activist fervently appealed to the State government, stressing the gravity of their agitation and the urgent need for reservations in education and government jobs.

Mr. Jarange Patil, whose indefinite hunger strike in Jalna’s Antarwali Sarati village entered its fourth day, urged members of the Maratha community not to resort to extreme steps for the sake of reservation.

“We are going to win… so, the youth do not have to end their lives,” Mr. Jarange Patil said, advising the community to keep political leaders at bay and abstain from engaging with them during the protest.

Urging the community’s youth not to resort to drastic measures, he encouraged them to stand firm in the movement, assuring them of its success. Mr. Jarange Patil warned against any suicide attempts, and called upon the community to safeguard and dissuade the youth from taking such actions.

The 40-year-old new poster boy of Maratha agitation declined any treatment and even refused to be examined by doctors after top officials from Jalna district met him to enquire about his health. As he defied medical treatment, Mr. Jarange Patil said he wanted to prioritise the cause of Maratha reservation over his health concerns. “The problems being faced by our children are far more significant than my physical suffering,” he said.

“A series of hunger strikes will begin in every village across the State from October 29 if the government fails to grant the reservation immediately. It should not underestimate the determination of agitating Marathas,” Mr. Jarange Patil said.