Mumbai: Hours after announcing that he would back 10 to 15 candidates in the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly election, Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil made a U-turn today and said he would not participate in the polls. Mr Patil said he held discussions and concluded that he would only work against those who did not "give justice to Marathas".
"After much deliberation, I have decided not to field any candidate in the state. The Maratha community will decide on its own whom to defeat and whom to elect. I have no affiliation to or support for any candidate or political party," he said.
"I am under no pressure from anyone. The community itself will decide whom to support based on their commitment to the Maratha cause," he said, adding, "Those who have wronged or harassed the Maratha community should be taught a lesson through the ballot."
"It is not possible to contest and win an election on the strength of one caste. We are new in politics. If we field a candidate and he loses, it will be a shame for the caste. Therefore, I request all the Maratha candidates to withdraw their nomination," he told the media.
The 42-year-old activist, who made national headlines during his hunger strike demanding reservation benefits for Marathas, had earlier said he would support candidates challenging MLAs of the BJP-led Mahayuti in the Marathwada region. This region includes Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Beed, Hingoli, Jalna, Latur, Nanded, Osmanabad and Parbhani districts.
Manoj Jarange-Patil's decision to withdraw from the election is likely to benefit the Maha Vikas Aghadi of Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and Sharad Pawar's NCP as it would prevent the division of anti-BJP votes. Maratha votes were widely seen as a key factor behind the NDA's poor show in Maharashtra in the general election earlier this year.
Earlier, the Maratha quota activist had targeted the Mahayuti government, specifically Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. "The Chief Minister (Eknath Shinde) had promised to provide us the reservation. We pinned hopes on him. But Fadnavis did not let that happen," he said. "Fadnavis made the game plan. He told the Centre how the party will benefit through the OBCs by denying reservation to the Marathas," the activist had alleged.
Chief Minister Shinde had said Manoj Jarange-Patil should look at the steps taken by the Mahayuti government in the Marathas' interest. "During the Dussehra rally, I touched the feet of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue and took an oath... After that I immediately called a session of the state legislature and gave the Maratha community 10 per cent reservation. But this issue went to court... Before this, Devendra Fadnavis, when he was the chief minister, had given reservation to the Maratha community. However, the Maha Vikas Aghadi could not ensure that it is upheld in court."
"Jarange has taken to the streets to get justice for the Maratha community. But he should first ponder over the steps taken by the Mahayuti Government in the interest of Maratha community. Now the Maratha community is getting benefits like OBCs. Who did all this?" the Chief Minister said.