Three people have been detained after the vehicles of advocate Gunaratna Sadavarte, opposing the Maratha reservation In Maharashtra, were found vandalised outside his residence in Mumbai. Police are investigating the matter.
Reacting to the incident, Gunaratna vowed to fight and said, "As long as there is blood in my veins, I will fight for the rights of students of the open category. I will not let the country disintegrate over caste. We say 'Jai Sri Ram', we say 'Vande Mataram'...My vehicles were vandalised today. I might be killed. But I won't step back. I won't be scared."
Meanwhile, activist Manoj Jarange launched an indefinite fast on Wednesday to mount pressure on the state government on the demand for the Maratha quota as the 40-day ultimatum given by him came to an end.
Expressing disappointment over the state government's 'failure' to implement reservation for the Maratha community, he started his agitation at his native Antarwali Sarati village in Ambad tehsil of Jalna district on Wednesday morning. The Maratha community is around 30 per cent of the state's population.
Speaking to reporters during the fast, he said, "I had given the government a 40-day ultimatum to fulfil its promise regarding Maratha reservation...That period is over...No decision was taken by the government. Its lack of response left me with no choice but to resort to this extreme form of protest."
"Maharashtra chief minister had asked me to wait for 40 days so that the government takes a decision on the Maratha reservation. But he did not do it, therefore I have decided to start a fast-unto-death in my village," he added.
"I have put my life at stake. I am not afraid of death. All the hard-working Marathas are behind me. Did we indulge in any wrongdoing as the government is not listening to us? What we are demanding is our right and within the constitutional framework. Maratha families are suffering a lot. We are not even making it an emotional issue," Jarange told the media.