‘Govt needed to bend’: Jarange Patil calls off 20-day hunger strike, but with an ultimatum

Jarange also appealed to protesters who had already reached Mumbai to return. While the hunger strike has been suspended, he said, the agitation itself would continue.

Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil has ended his 20-day hunger strike and temporarily suspended his decision to proceed to Mumbai, giving the Maharashtra government three months to act on his demands on Maratha reservation. Jarange, who had set out from Antarwali Sarati towards Mumbai as part of his agitation for reservation for the Maratha community, announced the decision around 6 am after a government delegation met him.

Announcing his decision to call off the strike, Jarange said that it is sometimes necessary to take two steps back to make a bigger move. “The government needed to bend before the community, and I made that happen through this agitation,” he said.

After the meeting, Jarange said the government had been given 90 days to fulfil the demands. If the demands were not met within this period, he said, the agitation would move towards Mumbai.

“Three years have passed since we started fighting for reservation. Now we will give the government another three months. We can say that we have been fighting for three years and three months. Although we are trusting the government, the agitation will continue. Even if we wait for 90 days, it will not make any difference. Let us consider this the last deception. These three months will be the last we give the government,” he said.

Jarange also appealed to protesters who had already reached Mumbai to return. While the hunger strike has been suspended, he said, the agitation itself would continue.

Explaining his decision, Jarange claimed the agitation had brought to light around 58 lakh Kunbi records relating to members of the Maratha community and alleged that efforts were being made to reduce the number of such records. He also said the government had agreed to issue a revised Government Resolution concerning the Hyderabad Gazetteer.

”The government has said that 5.8 million Kunbi records identified by the Shinde Committee will remain untouched and will not be reduced. The Kunbi certificates of the 4 public representatives from Marathwada that were revoked will be legally re-validated,” he said.

Jarange’s health had deteriorated after he began his march from Antarwali Sarati towards Mumbai. He was administered saline at a pilgrim accommodation facility at the Vitthal temple in Patoda.