Granting a nearly two-month reprieve to the beleaguered Eknath Shinde-led government over the Maratha reservation issue, quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil on November 2 finally agreed to withdraw his indefinite strike nine days after a delegation from the State government persuaded him to call off his hunger fast.
While calling off his fast in Jalna’s Antarwali Sarati village, Mr. Jarange Patil nonetheless kept up the pressure on the government, stating that December 24 would be the last day for the government to grant blanket reservation for all Marathas in the State by giving OBC Kunbi certificates to all members of the community. He also said that the ban on politicians entering villages would be temporarily withdrawn.
He, however, stressed that the agitation would not stop until reservation was secured and that he had merely withdrawn the indefinite hunger fast.
