2 Maha MPs, 3 MLAs Resign Over Maratha Quota as Protesters Say Don’t Want ‘Half-Hearted Reservation’

The Maratha quota row has once again stirred up Maharashtra, with two MPs and one MLA of the Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra tendering their resignation on Tuesday as protests in some of the regions turned violent.

Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) MP from Hingoli Hemant Patil was the first one to resign over the quota demand. Recently, another MP Hemant Godse from Nasik and MLA Ramesh Bornare from Vaijapur in the state assembly also tendered their resignation for the Maratha cause.

Two other MLAs, who have resigned over the issue, are Congress’ Suresh Warpudkar from Parbhani and BJP’s Laxman Pawar from Gevrai.

In a small village of Antarwali-Sarati in Jalna district of Marathwada, quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil is continuing his fast and is not ready to give any more time to Eknath Shinde government over his demand for “blanket reservation to Marathas”.

Patil categorically told Shinde over a phone conversation that his people will not accept “half-hearted reservation”.

The Maratha reservation issue saw incidents of violence over the past few days, with the houses of NCP leaders including MLAs Prakash Solanke and Sandeep Kishrsagar burnt down in Beed by angry protestors. The protestors also set afire the vehicles parked outside the houses of the two leaders.

Condemning the attacks, NCP (Sharad Pawar) faction working president MP Supriya Sule demanded the resignation of home minister and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. She is of the opinion that the situation has gone beyond the control of the Shinde government.

Former CM Uddhav Thackeray also slammed Eknath Shinde for not being serious about this issue. “When the CM called an important meeting of the Maratha reservation sub-committee on Monday, one deputy chief minister remained absent citing health issue while the other deputy chief minister preferred to go poll-bound state to campaign for his party,” said Thackeray.

Further, he advised to the Shinde government to pressure the Centre to have a special session of Parliament on the issue. “I am ready to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi over this issue, but the CM and Deputy CMs who are going to Delhi frequently for cabinet expansion. Why are they not taking this issue to the PM? I urge all ministers representing Maharashtra in Modi’s cabinet to ask him to resolve this issue first and then take up other matters. Also, those who are in power have resigned so far, so why can’t they just solve the issue by staying in power?”

Another MLA from Shinde’s faction Suhas Kande said he will not visit any village in his constituency, Nandgaon in Nashik district, till the time Patil is on fast. Kande has also offered to tender his resignation. Senior NCP MLA Narhari Zirwal has also told his supporters that if required he will resign from his post for the Maratha’s cause.