Walking the caste tightrope ahead of the Lok Sabha election, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his Cabinet approved a Bill to provide a 10% quota for the Maratha community in education and government jobs, which was later passed unanimously by all parties during a special session of the Maharashtra legislature on Tuesday. The “historic” legislation fulfilled his promise to create a “foolproof” Maratha quota within three months, Mr. Shinde said.
However, activist Manoj Jarange Patil, who has embarked on multiple hunger strikes on this issue, was unsatisfied with the new legislation, terming it a “betrayal” of the community. He is seeking a Maratha quota carved out from the existing reservation for other backward classes (OBCs), which is more likely to pass Supreme Court scrutiny.
The Bill, passed by the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council, is similar to the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018 introduced by the then-government led by Devendra Fadnavis, which was struck down by the top court in May 2021. In fact, this is the third time in the last decade that the State has introduced legislation for a Maratha quota.
Pushes quotas to 62%
While seeking to fulfil long-pending demands and aspirations of poorer sections of the Maratha community, this Bill does not disturb the existing OBC quota. It will push total reservations in Maharashtra to 62%, above the Supreme Court-mandated limit of 50%.
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This Bill is distinct from the State government’s earlier notification on issuing Kunbi OBC certificates to eligible Marathas, who had records showing them as Kunbis. Thus, non-Kunbi Marathas will be covered under the legislation passed on Tuesday.
‘Foolproof reservation’
Speaking to reporters after the conclusion of the special session, Mr. Shinde said that this was a historic day for the Maratha community.
“The long-standing reservation demand of the Maratha community has finally been fulfilled after many years. Our government has given them a foolproof reservation without disturbing the reservation of the OBC community. We have taken the step to bring educationally and socially backward Marathas into the mainstream,” he said. “This is a historic day for the Maratha community. I had taken an oath before the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji to give them reservation and have made good that promise within three months,” the Chief Minister said, as celebrations erupted outside the legislature.
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The CM thanked his Deputies – the BJP’s Mr. Fadnavis and the Nationalist Congress Party’s Ajit Pawar — as well as the 3.5 lakh government officials “who worked tirelessly” on the survey to prove that the Marathas are socially and economically backward. He also thanked the Opposition leaders for cooperating with the government to get the Bill passed in both Houses of the State legislature.
Jarange-Patil unimpressed
As he tabled the Bill in the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Shinde called it “a victory for the Maratha community, for Maratha unity and for a persistent struggle” while lauding the agitation and efforts of quota activist Mr. Jarange-Patil, whose hunger strikes since last September have been instrumental in spurring government action on Maratha demands.
Mr. Jarange-Patil, however, was not impressed with the Bill, claiming that it had been passed only to secure votes ahead of the elections, and warning of an intensified agitation.
Moments after the Bill was unanimously passed, the activist dramatically threw off his saline treatment apparatus. However, he continued to maintain his demand for a Maratha quota under the Kunbi OBC category and said that he would announce his future course of action at a meeting at Jalna’s Antarwali Sarathi village on Wednesday.
‘Will intensify agitation’
“We had asked for something else and something completely different has been imposed on us. This decision of the government has been taken solely with an eye to garnering votes in the Lok Sabha election and votes in mind,” he alleged. “Henceforth, our agitation will only intensify. The Maratha community does not trust this government... This reservation will not hold water in the Supreme Court. We do not care if the government announces a 10% or a 20% reservation. We want it only from the OBC category. We will fight for our original demands and will get it at any cost, even at the cost of my life,” the activist warned ominously.
Mr. Jarange-Patil, on his fourth hunger strike in recent months, pointed out that the State government had completely evaded the question of whether it would grant Kunbi OBC certificates to blood relatives of Marathas whose records had already proved them as Kunbis.
‘Pre-poll eyewash’
While the Opposition parties passed the bill unanimously, the Congress later denounced it as a “pre-election eyewash”, accusing the government of hoodwinking the Maratha community.
Maharashtra Leader of Opposition and senior Congressman Vijay Wadettiwar alleged that the Eknath Shinde regime had “fooled the Marathas.”
“Does the State government have the authority to pass such a Bill when the maximum reservation limit in Maharashtra already exceeds 50%? Such a Bill was passed in 2018 and had been scrapped by the Supreme Court,” Mr. Wadettiwar said.
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He added that the Opposition had been compelled to supported the Bill on Tuesday for fear of accusations of voting against it merely for the sake of opposition. “We were not allowed to speak in the Assembly. Our voices were stifled. This Bill was brought with the sole aim of winning the Lok Sabha election,” the Congressman said.
SC scrutiny
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray also wondered whether granting such a reservation came within the ambit of the State government. “I have said right from the beginning that this is a highly technical issue, one which rests with the Centre. This Bill will again be scrapped in the Supreme Court. It is a farce to win elections. The government has deceived both the Marathas and the OBCs, and is merely diverting attention from pressing issues,” he said.
However, both Mr. Shinde and Mr. Fadnavis dismissed suggestions that the Bill would not pass the SC’s scrutiny. “Some are saying that this Bill will not hold water in the SC. But I have full confidence it will stand up to scrutiny. Our government has assembled an army of the best legal minds to resolve this issue in the apex court,” Mr. Shinde said.
Stating that the path was now clear for an enduring Maratha reservation, Mr. Fadnavis said: “When I was CM [between 2014 and 2019], the Bill which our government had passed was upheld by the Bombay High Court, but was struck down by the SC. We then formed a committee under retired Chief Justice Bhosale to study the deficiencies in our Act as pointed by the SC. Our government [the present Shinde government] had given a mandate to the Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission headed by Justice (retd) Sunil Shukre to study the backwardness of the Maratha community. It was only after an extensive survey, wherein 2.5 crore households were covered, was it opined that the community would be given 10% reservation in education and government jobs.”
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, though a Congress ally, expressed his thanks to Mr. Shinde, noting that the OBC community’s reservation had not been affected while granting the quota for the Marathas. He also urged the government to announce jobs and educational benefits for the Maratha youth as soon as the educational year opened.
