20 September,2023 05:50 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
File Photo
The Maratha quota panel constituted to determine the Standard operating procedure for issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to members of the Maratha community from Marathwada, has been allotted space in Mantralaya by the Maharashtra government.
A 20-member staff including an official of the rank of additional secretary, and desk officers have also been allotted, a report in PTI cited a Government Resolution as saying.
Reportedly, the Justice Sandip Shinde (retd) committee has been allotted space on floor seven of the state secretariat, Mantralaya, to hold meetings.
The state cabinet had previously decided to issue Kunbi caste certificates to those Marathas from Marathwada region who possess revenue or education documents from the Nizam era that recognised them as Kunbis who have been grouped under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category in Maharashtra.
Maratha quota stir in Jalna and subsequent resolution
The Maratha reservation issue came to the fore after violence broke out in Maharashtra's Jalna district where the protestors were lathi-charged after they refused to let go of activist Manoj Jarange who had been on an indefinite hunger strike over the issue. The police also used tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. This created unrest politically as well with the incumbent government and the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi trading barbs.
After much furore, the government issued a Government Resolution that Marathas from the Marathwada region would be issued Kunbi caste certificates after they furnished records dating back to the Nizam era and also constituted the panel. However, Jarange was displeased with the condition and had stopped consuming liquids and IV fluids.
He finally ended his protest after Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde held a meeting with him. Speaking on the occasion, the CM announced that his government is committed to providing reservations to the Maratha community. He was quoted saying that Jarange's fight was not for personal demand and thus it had the community's backing.
The Bombay High Court, taking cognisance of the protest, had asked the state government to ensure law and order was maintained and the "health" of protestors was not harmed.
