MUMBAI – Security has been greatly increased in Mumbai when Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange started a “fast unto death” at Azad Maidan, a designated protest spot in the city. The demonstration, which started today, marks the end of a march that took Jarange and thousands of his supporters from his home village of Antarwali Sarati in Jalna district.
A lot of security people have been sent to handle the demonstration. More than 1,500 police officers are on the ground, together with troops from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the Rapid Action Force (RAF), and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). The police in Mumbai estimate more than 20,000 demonstrators, which is more than the ground can hold, which is just 5,000 people. Because of this, three additional groups who wanted to protest on Friday were not given authorization.
The police have, however, given Jarange permission to protest for one day, from 9 am to 6 pm, with a limit of 5,000 people. There has been a lot of disagreement about this because Jarange has said several times that he plans to go on an indefinite fast and has accused the government of trying to limit the effect of his movement.
Jarange, a well-known leader in the Maratha reservation movement, wants everyone in the Maratha community to be recognized as Kunbis, an agricultural caste that is already part of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) group. He says that this would make them eligible for reservations in government employment and schools, and that a separate quota for Marathas would not hold up in court.
To get ready for the demonstration, the Navi Mumbai police have put traffic limits on some important roads, like the Eastern Freeway and the Sion-Panvel Highway, which were busy because of Jarange’s convoy. More Railway Protection Force and Maharashtra Security Force officers have been sent to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to help keep the trains safe.
The protests have made things hard for the Maharashtra state government. The Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis, has made it clear that the administration is “positive about solving the problems of the Marathas if they are social and financial in nature and not related to political reservation.” But this position hasn’t been enough to make Jarange happy. He still wants Kunbi credentials for all Marathas.
Last year, Jarange became well-known after a hunger strike that resulted in the granting of more than eight lakh Kunbi certificates, which allowed many Marathas to obtain the OBC quota. His present indefinite fast is a new effort to get the government to come up with a more complete answer that he thinks will be legitimate.