Maratha Quota Issue: Manoj Jarange Ends 9-Day Hunger Strike, Vows To Continue Fight For OBCs

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange ended his nine-day fast after community members' pleas.

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange ends his nine-day hunger strike.

Source : PTI

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange called off his indefinite fast on Wednesday, nine days after its launch demanding OBC quota for the community. He said that he was ending his fast after members of the community pleaded with him to end his strike. 

Jarange said he decided to call off the fast keeping in mind the sentiments of the Maratha community, reported PTI. 

“We will deal with those who have hurt the Maratha community,” he said while speaking to his supporters in Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district. The Maratha quota activist sat on a hunger strike on September 17, his sixth in a year, to press for the reservation to the community under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) community. 

Jarange remarked that the Maratha community has suffered a lot in the last 70 years saying "We want the reservation for a better future for our youth."

The Maharashtra government unanimously passed a bill in February this year providing 10 per cent reservation for the Marathas in education and government jobs under a separate category. But Jarange has stuck to his demand for a quota for the community under the OBC head.

The announcement to withdraw the fast came hours after Jalna district collector Radhakrishna Panchal and Superintendent of Police Ajaykumar Bansal met Jarange at the protest site on Tuesday midnight and convinced him to end the fast considering his failing health.

OBC Activists Call Off Counter-Protest

Following Jarange's withdrawal, two OBC activists Laxman Hake and Navnath Waghmare also suspended their week-long counter fast which they had undertaken in Jalna to "safeguard" the quota for the Other Backward Classes. 

The two activists had been on indefinite hunger strike at Wadigodri village, located 2km from Antarwali Sarati village in Maharashtra's Jalna district, where Jarange called off his nine-day-old hunger strike. 

The protest was aimed at countering Jarange's demands, which they deemed unconstitutional.