Maratha quota protest brings Mumbai to standstill; Manoj Jarange’s strike to go on Saturday at Azad Maidan

While granting a one-day extension for the protest, the police reminded the organisers that the number of protestors at venue had exceeded the permitted limit of 5,000. The official mentioned protestors also deliberately disrupted traffic near CSMT and a few other locations by sitting on the roads, causing inconvenience to the public.

“Some protestors used provocative language while raising slogans against the government. Taking cognisance of these events, we asked organisers to take adequate precautions to maintain law and order,” the official stated.

According to the Bombay High Court order, the permission expired at 6 pm, however, the organisers had asked for an extension, and the Azad Maidan police station permitted their application, the police official said, as per a report by PTI.

Considering the congestion at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus due to gathering of Jarange’s supporters, the Central Railway requested passengers to not travel unnecessarily to the station.

The city also faced traffic congestion on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and Sion-Panvel Highway due to Jarange’s convoy. Major roads such as the Eastern Freeway, Sion-Panvel Highway, Panvel-Sion Road, V N Purav Road, P D’Mello Road, Wallchand Hirachand Marg, Dr Dadabhai Naoroji Road, and Hajarimal Somani Road were closed to regular vehicles until 6 pm, with access allowed only for emergency services.

Maratha quota protest: What is Jangre’s demand?

He has been insisting that all Marathas be classified as Kunbis, an agricultural caste within the OBC category, which would qualify them for reservations in government employment and educational opportunities.

While accusing the Devendra Fadnavis led Maharashtra government of “lack of cooperation” towards the community, he stated, “Now that permission has been granted for this protest, we must respect the law, cooperate with the police, and ensure nothing is done to tarnish the community’s image.”

In February 2024, while Eknath Shinde was Chief Minister, the Maharashtra legislature held a special one-day session and unanimously approved a bill granting the Maratha community a 10 percent reservation in education and government jobs under the ‘Socially and Economically Backward Classes’ category. This reservation has since been contested in court.

Meanwhile, Samadhan Awatade, BJP MLA from Pandharpur-Mangalwedha, on Friday urged the Maharashtra assembly Speaker to set up a special one-day session of the legislature to talk and resolve the Maratha reservation issue. In a letter to Speaker Rahul Narwekar, he said, “In view of the ongoing agitation at Azad Maidan under the leadership of Manoj Jarange-Patil, I humbly request that a one-day special session of the Maharashtra legislature be convened so that reservation can be granted to the Maratha community.”