CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR: Quota activist Manoj Jarange returned to his native village Antarwali Sarati in Jalna district to a grand welcome on Monday, where he warned of blocking milk and vegetable supply to Mumbai if govt fails to meet the Maratha community's reservation demands.
Jarange returned to the village after being discharged from a private hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where he was under treatment after his five-day hunger strike at Mumbai's Azad Maidan. Upon his arrival, villagers welcomed him with enthusiasm, showering him with gulal and raising supportive slogans.
Speaking to reporters before heading to the village, Jarange reiterated that state govt should begin distributing Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas in Marathwada before Sept 17 (observed as Marathwada Mukti Sangram Din).
"Govt must start implementing the Hyderabad Gazette-based GR without delay. If the process is not initiated by Sept 17, I will be compelled to announce harsh decisions during the Dasara gathering... If the demand is not met, we will stop milk and vegetable supplies to Mumbai," he said.
In a sharp caution to the CM, his two deputies and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, he said, "If the GR wording was altered, we too will challenge the 1994 OBC GR in court. The judiciary will then have to scrap that too. We have shown enough patience, but now it is enough."
The Hyderabad Gazette, issued in the erstwhile Hyderabad State, recorded Marathas as Kunbis, making them eligible for benefits under the OBC category. Jarange's hunger strike in Mumbai forced govt to issue a fresh GR adopting this gazette as the basis for granting Kunbi certificates.
He said though the new GR would benefit Marathas across the state, any loopholes must be addressed. "I will not lose hope. If there are mistakes, I am ready for another fight," he said, while confirming that the annual Dasara Melawa would be held this year too, though on a smaller scale due to time constraints. "As per tradition, the gathering will happen. From there, we will show govt what it has not given and how we will take it," he said.