Is the Mahayuti government ready to talk to Manoj Jarange? Minister Vikhe Patil said something big

News Topical, Digital Desk : Maharashtra minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil on Thursday (August 28) said that the government is ready to talk to Maratha activist Manoj Jarange. He also accused the opposition alliance Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) of failing to protect Maratha reservation during its government. Patil, head of the cabinet sub-committee related to Maratha reservation and Water Resources Minister, told reporters in Shirdi that if Jarange decides to go to Mumbai, talks will be held with him there.

Vikhe Patil said, "The government has always taken a positive attitude. We are ready to talk to Jarange, but since he is adamant on going to Mumbai for his agitation, we will talk to him there. A decision will be taken after consulting the sub-committee members on Friday. If both sides take an equally positive attitude, a solution can be found quickly."

Manoj Jarange will go on indefinite hunger strike from August 29!

Jarange, who is demanding 10 per cent reservation for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, reached Mumbai by Thursday evening and vowed to begin an indefinite fast at Azad Maidan from August 29 (Friday). He reached Shivneri Fort, the birthplace of Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Pune district on Thursday morning. Earlier, he had claimed that Vikhe Patil had invited him for talks at Shivneri.

Government is sensitive towards demands of Maratha community- Vikhe Patil

Though the minister had said on Wednesday that the government was sensitive to the demands of the Maratha community, no decision has been taken about a meeting with Jarange. "Manoj Jarange was contacted through his colleagues, but the message was not conveyed to him properly, which led to misunderstanding. It will be clear soon," Vikhe Patil said on Thursday.

Jarange had called CM Fadnavis anti-Maratha

The Maharashtra minister further said that the Maratha reservation issue will not be resolved if personal attacks are made on Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Jarange had called Fadnavis 'anti-Hindu' and 'anti-Maratha'. He said that the MVA could not protect the Maratha reservation, citing the Supreme Court's cancellation of the reservation made during Fadnavis' previous tenure in 2018.

On May 5, 2021, the Supreme Court had struck down reservation for the Maratha community in college admissions and jobs in Maharashtra, saying there were no exceptional circumstances in this case to violate the 50 per cent cap on total reservation. At that time, the state was ruled by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

Read More: Delhi High Court reserves decision on PFI's petition, challenging Centre's ban