Protesters step up heat on Pawar over Maratha reservation

Maratha protesters question Sharad Pawar on reservation stance ahead of Maharashtra Assembly poll in Solapur.

Ahead of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly poll, Maratha protesters asked tough questions to Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday in Solapur’s Barshi town. A group of protesters stopped Mr. Pawar’s car and sought his stance on the Maratha reservation near Kurduwadi village.

One of the protesters asked him, “Do you support Maratha reservation? If you do, then why do you not publicly speak up and take your stand? For years you have been saying that you support the Maratha community...”

Before the car sped away, Mr. Pawar briefly said that he supported Maratha reservation. The group raised slogans waving black flags, ‘Maratha aarakshan [Maratha reservation]’.

A similar incident occurred in the Barshi town where Mr. Pawar addressed a political rally on Sunday. A group of youth at the venue raised slogans mentioning Maratha quota leader Manoj Jarange-Patil’s name.

Inspector Balkrishna Dabade from the Barshi police station confirmed the incident to the The Hindu and said: “We had detained the youth for sometime because they were creating unrest by raising slogans on Maratha reservation by holding black flags. They were in the age group of 20 to 25. They were overpowered by the security guards on the ground and the police. We released them after 5 p.m. when the rally was over.”

Mr. Jarange-Patil has been spearheading the reservation protests demanding Kunbi certificates for Marathas and their blood relatives as Kunbis enjoy benefits under the OBC quota. On Sunday, the Maratha Arakshan Shantata rally was carried out by the activist in Pune.

In Barshi, Mr. Pawar addressed a rally as part of the upcoming State Legislative Assembly poll, expected to be held by October. Criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, “The PM had made promises to double the income of farmers, but instead, farmer suicides have doubled in Maharashtra. The BJP government at the Centre and the State government have not utilised their resources and power to support farmers that could reduce their hardships and generate employment opportunities for the youth. We are at a crucial stage that demands urgent attention to reduce debt burden on farmers and waive their loans. It is possible, I had done it when I was the Union Agriculture Minister. The youth are in distress because there are no jobs. To change this narrative, we must change the government.”