We don't oppose reservation for anyone, says Dhananjay Munde after meeting OBC activists

Dhananjay Munde. File Pic

Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Dhananjay Munde has said that the government is not against reservation for anyone and the demands of two activists agitating for protection of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota will be kept before the government, reported the PTI.

Amid the ongoing Maratha quota demand under the OBC category, two activists from the Other Backward Classes have been sitting on a fast in Maharashtra's Jalna district, seeking an assurance that their quota will not be affected, as per the PTI.

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NCP MLA Dhananjay Munde along with his cousin and BJP leader Pankaja Munde on Monday, met OBC activists Laxman Hake and Navnath Waghmare, who have been sitting on a fast since June 13 at Wadigodri village in Jalna district in Maharashtra, according to the PTI.

The OBC activists have seeking a written assurance from the government that their quota will not be affected.

"We don't oppose giving reservation to anyone. The state government has also clarified it numerous times. But even after that, misunderstandings are being created among communities, hence the government should clarify what is going to happen on this (quota) issue and it should be communicated to all the communities," the Maharashtra agriculture minister Dhananjay Munde said after meeting the activists.

The misunderstandings should be cleared as fast as possible, Munde said.

"The demands of our two agitators (Hake and Waghmare) will be kept before the government. Government should respect the demands of these two agitators.

The respect that earlier agitations in this state and the country have received from the government should also be given to this agitation and demands," Dhananjay Munde said, the news agency reported on Monday.

In February this year, the Maharashtra legislature unanimously passed a bill providing 10 per cent reservation for the Marathas in education and government jobs under a separate category.

Activist Manoj Jarange has been demanding implementation of the draft notification that recognises Kunbis as "sage soyare" (blood relatives) of the Maratha community members and a law to identify Kunbis as Marathas.

Kunbi, an agrarian group, falls under the OBC category, and Jarange has been demanding that Kunbi certificates be issued to all Marathas, thus making them eligible for quota benefits.

Hake and Waghmare have said they are not against the reservation for Marathas, but it should not disturb the OBC quota.

The OBC activists have been demanding scrapping of the government's draft notification that recognises Kunbis as 'sage soyare' of the Maratha community members.

(with PTI inputs)