Breaking his five-day hunger strike last week after the Maharashtra government accepted six out of eight demands, Manoj Jarange Patil, the face of the Maratha reservation protests that have gripped the western state, had one thing to say:
“Today is Diwali for us, as we have got what we wanted.”
But this Diwali has been short-lived. A week after the dramatic visuals of the protests coming to an end—a visibly weakened Patil breaking his fast after taking a sip of juice before being rushed to the hospital—the government’s proposal has left Marathas with mixed emotions and uncertainty over what comes next.
After deliberations with the Cabinet sub-committee, the government relented by accepting six out of Patil’s eight demands, including a government resolution (GR) for implementing the Hyderabad Gazette (1918) provisions, which would allow Marathas from the Marathwada region to establish their Kunbi status and avail of reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs). The Kunbis are included in the OBC list in Maharashtra.
“We don’t know if we should be happy or sad. It feels like we’ve been left hanging in a limbo. The government has given the GR but ministers from the government itself are saying they will fight this GR in court. How does that make sense?” asked Chandrashekhar Ghadge, a Maratha protester and the Pune district president of Sambhaji Brigade.
“We Marathas are scared now as to what will happen next. If it does get challenged in court, it's possible that it gets stayed. We will have to figure out the next steps then," he added.
Legal Battles Brewing
Ghadge’s fears are not without reason. Following the GR, OBC leaders in the state have been holding a series of meetings deliberating the next move. Maharashtra minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Chhagan Bhujbal has threatened to challenge his own government’s decision in court.
The veteran leader said he was “seeking legal opinion” on whether the government was even authorised to change people’s caste, and said that while he was not against Maratha reservation, it should not be included under the OBCs.
The GR handed over by the government to Patil states that certificates issued under the Hyderabad Gazette would allow access only to existing schemes where eligibility criteria are already met, rather than create a new category. This has left room for interpretation and legal contestation.
Maratha activist Vinod Patil, one of the earliest to file petitions in court for Maratha reservation, called the GR “completely useless.” He told The Quint:
“Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has made it clear that the GR is not to get Marathas until the ambit of OBCs. This so-called GR is actually just an information booklet. It will be taking more legal measures in light of this.”Vinod Patil, Maratha leader
On Sunday, the Chief Minister had said, "We will not take out reservation from the OBC and provide it to the Maratha community. Whatever happens, we will ensure that the OBC reservation is not affected."
This has further given rise to speculation on how the government's proposal will be implemented.
Political Risks
Political analyst Hemant Desai pointed to the upcoming municipal elections in over 29 districts of Maharashtra, which have heightened the stakes.
“Marathwada is crucial in this aspect for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde. The BJP wants to expand its base in the region, but Manoj Jarange is against Chief Minister Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar. A lot now depends on how the GR will be implemented, because OBC leaders, who are an important support base for the party, are already mobilising against it.”Hemant Desai
Desai also noted that balancing Maratha demands without upsetting the OBCs will determine whether the outcome becomes a lasting achievement or not.
“The protests did not impact the Assembly elections in 2024 as Patil wasn’t that powerful then, and the government used schemes like Ladki Behen Yojana to win over voters," he said. "But now, it could have an adverse effect if the unrest continues.”
Besides the Hyderabad Gazette, the government also agreed to implement the Satara Gazette (1884), withdraw cases against Maratha activists from 2023-2024, facilitate compensation to family members of Marathas who lost their lives during the protests and give jobs to their eligible relatives, issue a GR specifying the process of issuing the caste certificates based on the 68 lakh Kunbi records, and form village-level committees to scrutinise applications of Marathas before the Kunbi certificates are issued, and immediate clearance of certificates.
The government did not accept the demand of blanket reservation for all Marathas as Kunbis, not just those in Marathwada. It also did not accept the demand for Marathas to be included in central OBC quotas, which remains outside the state’s jurisdiction.
Mixed Reactions Among Protesters
Despite the looming obstacles, there is a sense of victory among some sections of the Maratha protesters. Kanchan Patil, who has been part of the agitation for Maratha reservation agitation since 2012, is optimistic about the outcome.
“The GR speaks about benefits that are already there, but the good thing is that it will will help those whose records have been misplaced. We don’t want to take anything from others wrongly. We just want to take back what's ours, peacefully. The media has shown us in a bad light during the protests, calling us parasites and dirty for protesting. Mumbai is also ours, Maharashtra is also ours, how can you call us that? Nobody showed how our people cleaned up the streets.”Kanchan Patil, Maratha protester
Amol Jadhavrao, a leader of the Maratha Kranti Morcha who had been actively involved in organising the recent round of protests, said that despite the obstacles left to be tackled, the Hyderabad Gazette was an “achievement.”
“All protests have steps, and this one is an important step for our agitation. While it will be worrying if someone challenges the resolution in court, the clearance from the government is still a big step,” he said.
The next step, Jadhavrao stressed, would be ensuring proper implementation of the Satara Gazette provisions, which would help Marathas from other districts access similar benefits. If it was not implemented properly he said that the community will have to again “take up the matter.”
“In politics, if the government is giving something it is also taking away something. In the past, protests have gone on for longer but this time, the protest was in Mumbai, where the government directly sees the impact. It was also around Ganesh Chaturthi and the government knew if they don't give in to our demands, we will not move.”Amol Jadhavrao, Maratha Kranti Morcha
Patil, who has undoubtedly become synonymous with the decades-old Maratha agitation, made sure he has the last word amidst the confusion and legal worries. He warned the government that if they don't begin issuing Kunbi certificates to all Marathas in Marathwada based on the records found in the Hyderabad Gazette by 17 September (Marathwada Liberation Day), he will have to make a strong decision, which the government will have to deal with.
It’s a warning that leaves the future uncertain, for Maratha protesters as well as the state's fragile political landscape.