In a dramatic development, tribal leaders, including Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal, protesting against the demand to include the Dhangar community in the Scheduled Tribe list, on Friday jumped from the third floor of Maharashtra State secretariat Mantralaya on the safety net just a floor below. The protestors said they did this act for not getting appointment with Chief Minister. No injuries were reported in the incident that saw tense moments unfolding at the six-storey Mantralaya complex. The incident occurred around 12.40 pm.

Zirwal, his fellow Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Kiran Lahamate and BJP tribal MP Hemant Savara were among those who jumped from the third floor onto the safety net installed on the second floor, a precaution taken in response to previous suicide attempts at the site.

The protest, which involved two MLAs and an MP from the ruling Mahayuti alliance, highlighted escalating tensions over the Government’s handling of tribal issues.

After the police personnel removed these leaders from the net, these tribal representatives then gathered in the ground floor passage and began a sit-in claiming that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was not meeting them to discuss the quota issue. Dhangar or shepherd community in the state is demanding ST category inclusion for the purpose of reservation. But Zirwal and other tribal leaders are protesting against this demand.

“I am an adivasi first and then an MLA and a deputy speaker,” Zirwal told reporters when asked what led him to resort to such a protest. “CM Shinde should meet the protesters,” he added. BJP MLC Gopichand Padalkar said Zirwal holds a constitutional post and there is no need to take such an extreme step.

Zirwal said the Government should offer protection to students who have been protesting since a fortnight against the halt to recruitment under the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) in Maharashtra. Speaking in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar about the incident, Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Shirsat said, “Zirwal is in the Government and a responsible person...The protesters should have spoken to other leaders who are present there.

The Chief Minister meets everyone after the cabinet meeting. Instead of doing such agitations, they should have spoken to the CM first. This kind of protest by Zirwal is unacceptable.” “Caste-related agitations are going on across the state. The CM and two deputy CMs do hold talks with those who wish to discuss issues,” he said.