Jalna: Toughening stance, the striking Maratha leader Manoj Jarange-Patil demanded that Maharashtra Government should take permission of the Governor and issue the orders on the quotas for his community immediately, here on Wednesday.
Speaking to the media at Antarvali-Sarati village, Jarange-Patil, who is on an indefinite hunger strike for the past nine days, said wearily that he has “lost all hope of any government delegation coming to meet him and resolve the issue”.
“I can provide all the data, right from the period of the Nizam of Hyderabad to the government… They can issue the Government Resolution (GR) within a day. It will definitely withstand any legal scrutiny,” claimed Jarange-Patil.
He reiterated that the government should club the OBCs and Marathas which will enable them a speedy decision and ensure justice is done to the Maratha community which has been fighting for many years.
Attacking the administration, Jarange-Patil alleged that a conspiracy was hatched by some officials which led to the crackdown, caning and tear gassing on the Maratha protestors here on September 1, sparking angry protests across the state since the past five days, including today to express solidarity with the cause.
“I want to inform the people that this fight is for what is due to the Maratha community and to the poor… We have no intention of holding the government at ransom. We gave them four days (till Saturday), they held a cabinet meeting today but no decision has come, so now they cannot ask for any more extension,” Jarange-Patil said.
While expressing commitment to provide the reservations in education and jobs, the state government has tried to convince Jarange-Patil to call off his indefinite hunger strike and give them a month’s time to implement it.
On Tuesday, after several rounds of discussions, Jarange-Patil extended the time-limit till Saturday though the government said it would take at least a week or ten days while some leaders again opined that it would need a month’s time to do the needful that could witness a legal test.
—IANS
