No share cut from other communities: Fadnavis over Maratha quota row
With activist Manoj Jarange’s fast for Maratha quota entering its 11th day, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said the Government would grant whatever is permissible under the Constitution but would not take from one community’s share to give another.
He was replying to questions on the issue of Maratha reservation and reports that a late-night meeting was held by the Government to discuss Jarange’s agitation.
Jarange, who began his latest hunger strike at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district on August 29, has been demanding reservation for the Maratha community under the OBC category, including implementation of the Hyderabad and Satara Gazette records and issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to eligible members of the Maratha community. Kunbi is a traditional agrarian (farming) community that officially falls under the OBC category, making them eligible for reservation benefits in education and Government jobs.
Activists from the Other Backward Classes had also staged an agitation in the village to safeguard the constitutional rights and reservation share of the OBC community.
Fadnavis said the ruling alliance had taken all major decisions concerning the (Maratha) community so far and would take any further decisions required within the framework of the Constitution and subject to court orders.
“Whatever is permissible under the Constitution will certainly be given. Whatever is subject to the court’s decision will be dealt with accordingly. We are not going to take from one community’s share and give it to another,” he told reporters at Uran in Navi Mumbai.
The Government had not merely taken decisions on paper, but the actual benefits of these decisions were visible to the Maratha community, he stressed.
“We will do everything that is possible. We have never closed the doors for dialogue. A Government finds a solution through discussions, and the entire process is moving forward in that spirit,” Fadnavis said.
On claims that all issues raised by the Maratha community had been addressed, “All the issues that were raised have been resolved. If they feel there is still some gap or have any doubts, they should raise them and their doubts will be cleared,” he said.
