Fasting Manoj Jarange may cancel Mumbai march due to poor health

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange said he may call off his Mumbai journey after health problems worsened during his hunger strike, now in its 18th day. His warning sharpens pressure on the Maharashtra government even as police restrictions and Ganeshotsava festival security complicate the protest.

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange said on Wednesday that his journey to Mumbai might be called off because of health problems caused by long hours of travel and his ongoing hunger strike. He said the burning sensation in his stomach and feet had made it difficult for him to continue.

Jarange, who has been on a hunger strike for the last 18 days, is demanding OBC reservation for Maratha community members with Kunbi caste genealogies. He began his latest agitation from Antarwali Sarati in Jalna on Tuesday and set out for Mumbai despite the city police denying permission for a protest at Azad Maidan, citing law and order concerns during the Ganesh festival.

He reached Patoda in Maharashtra's Beed district at around 11 am on Wednesday, nearly 14 hours after leaving Antarwali Sarati, and later addressed a gathering there. Jarange said he was facing a severe burning sensation in his stomach and feet.

"If I take treatment, the government becomes completely carefree. If I stop treatment, they become tense. This tour to Mumbai is taking a toll on my health. I can continue if I'm fine, but such long travel is not good amid a hunger strike. The tour can also be cancelled if there is no option," he said.

Hundreds of villagers had extended support to him on the way as he travelled in a convoy of cars on Tuesday. Speaking in Patoda, he said, "Reservation is more important than the tour, which seems impossible because of the burning sensation in my stomach and feet."

He also urged supporters not to accompany him. "No vehicle should follow me from Patoda. I will change my route and go to Mumbai. I will only keep the police informed. Please let me go alone. If I am not allowed to enter Mumbai, then you can all come," he said.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said maintaining law and order was the responsibility of the police and questioned the timing of the agitation during the Ganesh festival, while indicating that the government would not tolerate any intimidating tactics. He also said the government had accepted 12 of the 13 "legally valid" demands raised by Maratha protesters.

Under the current plan, Jarange's carcade is to travel through Beed, Srigonda in Ahilyanagar, Hadapsar in Pune and Khopoli in Raigad district before reaching Azad Maidan in Mumbai on September 19, covering more than 400 km.

Jarange had earlier led a five-day protest and hunger strike at Azad Maidan on August 29, 2025, seeking Kunbi caste certificates for eligible Marathas. That protest ended on September 2, 2025, after the state government accepted six of eight demands and began administrative steps for Kunbi classification certificates.