Amid frantic appeals by the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government, pro-Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil on Tuesday said he would end his indefinite strike under the condition that the State CM, as well Deputy CMs, personally visit the protest site at Antarwali Sarati village in the State’s Jalna district along with written assurances on his demands regarding the quota issue.
Mr. Jarange Patil, whose strike entered its fifteenth day, made clear he would neither end his fast nor leave the protest site until every member of the Maratha community received the quota certificate.
He laid down certain conditions for the State government and gave it a month’s time to fulfil them. The conditions include withdrawal of all cases against the agitators, suspensions of high-level police officers allegedly responsible for carrying out the recent lathi-charge on protestors, and insistence that the government issue an OBC community caste certificates for all Marathas, so that they may avail of the benefits presently enjoyed by the OBCs.
