Saralnama
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed activist Manoj Jarange-Patil and organisers of the Maratha quota protests in Mumbai to file affidavits addressing allegations of large-scale public property damage during the five-day agitation. Jarange-Patil had launched a hunger strike on August 29 demanding reservations for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. The Maharashtra government issued a resolution granting Kunbi status to Marathas of Marathwada, a sub-caste included in OBC, after which Jarange-Patil ended his fast. The court questioned who would bear the cost of the alleged damages and asked the protest leaders to clarify their role in instigating the protests. The agitation had caused traffic disruptions and incidents of violence, including an assault on a passenger and vandalism of a bus. The Maratha community’s demand for reservations resurfaced in 2023, leading to protests, legislative action, and a 10% quota bill passed in February 2024. Jarange-Patil insists on OBC classification for Marathas, citing constitutional limits on total reservations. The court’s order follows multiple protests led by Jarange-Patil over two years. (Updated 3 Sep 2025, 19:44 IST; source: link)