Manoj Jarange
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar : Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Friday rejected the existing 10% reservation under the socially and educationally backward classes (SEBC) category, saying the Maratha community, which he claimed constituted 55% of Maharashtra’s population, deserved reservation from the OBC quota. “For the Maratha community, 10% SEBC reservation is not enough. The activist, whose indefinite agitation at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district entered its seventh day, reiterated that he would not withdraw the protest till govt issued 58 lakh Kunbi certificates, citing records allegedly found in the Hyderabad Gazette. The quota activist also announced that a key meeting of the Maratha community would be held on Sept 12, a day after the Sept 11 deadline he has set for state govt to fulfil its assurances on the reservation issue.
We account for 55% of the state’s population and therefore need our rightful reservation from the OBC category,” Jarange told reporters.
“Govt should formally announce the issuance of 58 Lakh Kunbi certificates as per Hyderabad gazette,” he said. “Once we decide to march towards Mumbai, very little will remain in the hands of the party governing the state and its members,” he warned, while demanding implementation of the Satara, Pune, Bombay and Aundh gazette records in addition to the Hyderabad Gazette.