Shiv Sena asked to clarify its stand on Maratha reservation
The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are mounting pressure on the Shiv Sena to clear its stand on providing quota to the Marathas, a community that constitutes 32 per cent of the population in Maharashtra.
Besides, pro-Maratha social organisation the Sambhaji Brigade has also cornered the Shiv Sena on the quota issue. The trigger was a cartoon in Sunday's edition of Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna mocking the Marathas silent rally.
The Congress and the NCP have blasted the Shiv Sena, which is the ruling BJP's ally at the Centre and the state, saying that the party's real face has been exposed. The parties have called upon the government to take immediate action to give 16 per cent reservation to the Marathas without disturbing the quotas of other communities.
Congress and NCP referred to Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray's demand for convening a special session of the state legislature to discuss the Maratha reservation issue. However, they claimed that Uddhav has not clarified how reservation can be provided so that it can stand the test of law.
Former chief minister Narayan Rane, who had moved to the Congress from Shiv Sena in 2005, said the Shiv Sena never supported reservation for the Marathas. “Shiv Sena did not appear before a committee headed by me on Maratha reservation during the Congress-NCP government. Shiv Sena has not made any representation in support of reservation to the Marathas. Recently it was the Shiv Sena that refrained from signing a resolution moved by parties in the state legislature demanding quota to the Maratha community. Therefore, Sena is clearly opposed to it,” he said.
Rane said the committee had submitted its report recommending 16 per cent quota to the Marathas after holding a comprehensive survey of 1.8 million persons across the state. ''The government should reveal the findings of the survey and immediately provide reservation,'' he said.
Shiv Sena minister Subhash Desai blamed the Congress and the NCP for fuelling the pro-reservation agitation. “They ruled the state for 15 years, but did nothing for Maratha reservation. They created a farce of reservation, which was later struck down by the courts. Thackeray has fully supported the ongoing Maratha agitation and even Sanjay Raut had backed it through his writings in the Saamana. Shiv Sena is strongly in favour of quota to the Maratha community,'' he said.
Desai disowned the cartoon saying that was not the party’s official stand. However, the leader of opposition in the Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe said: “The Shiv Sena has always been anti-Muslims and antiDalits; now they are even going against the Maratha community. All Marathas are extremely agitated by the cartoon.”