03 September,2026 09:19 AM IST | Jalna | mid-day online correspondent
Manoj Jarange. File Pic
Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil on Wednesday agreed to drink water and accept an intravenous saline drip following an emotional appeal from BJP legislator Prasad Lad, but said he would continue his indefinite hunger strike until his key demands were met.
Manoj Jarange, who has been protesting at Antarwali Sarati over the demand for reservation and the issuance of Kunbi caste certificates, said accepting water and medical treatment did not mean he was withdrawing his agitation.
"I am drinking water and accepting the IV saline, but I will not call off the hunger strike until our demands are fulfilled," he said.
Addressing supporters and the media, Manoj Jarange accused leaders in the ruling establishment of allowing political considerations to affect the handling of the Maratha reservation issue.
He alleged that the matter had become caught in a dispute over who should receive credit for resolving it, referring to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Speaking about Prasad Lad, who met him at the protest site, Jarange Patil said, "Our Lad Saheb has arrived. There is no point in blaming him; he genuinely cares from his heart for the children of our community."
Jarange Patil also criticised the government's handling of negotiations and questioned the role of Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, who has been involved in discussions over the issue.
He said the protesters had placed their trust in Vikhe Patil but alleged that the minister was delaying the process and creating divisions among leaders over the reservation issue.
Jarange Patil said his health had deteriorated during the hunger strike and described the physical strain he was experiencing.
"If I speak for too long, my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth," he said.
Following Lad's appeal, Jarange Patil drank water and agreed to receive an intravenous saline drip. However, he said he would not end his hunger strike until the government formally issued a Government Resolution and provided a final decision on his demands.
He also said the protest at Antarwali Sarati would continue until the government addressed the issue of Kunbi caste certificates.
"The certificates that ministers Sanjay Shirsat and Chandrashekhar Bawankule cancelled, I will retrieve them at any cost. I will not end the fast without them," Jarange Patil said.
Representing the Maharashtra government, BJP legislator Prasad Lad assured Jarange Patil that the state's pending commitments to the Maratha community would be addressed before September 17.
Lad said the process of issuing Kunbi caste certificates based on the Hyderabad Gazette would begin from September 3 at noon.
He also appealed to Jarange Patil to end his hunger strike and said he was willing to bring a delegation of cabinet ministers to Antarwali Sarati for further discussions.
According to Lad, directions had been issued to administrative authorities regarding four students whose Kunbi certificates had been revoked.
Lad said that most of the 1,376 cases registered during the Maratha reservation agitation had already been withdrawn. He added that legal and technical reviews were underway to determine whether the remaining cases could also be dropped.
The government would also provide a dedicated 1,250-square-foot office for the Maratha Reservation Committee, he said.
Lad further said that the Justice Shinde Committee, which is examining genealogical records and caste verification, would receive a one-year extension and a 3,000-square-foot office in Mumbai.
He assured that educational and financial concessions available to the Other Backward Classes category would be extended to the Maratha community.
Lad also said no Maratha student's admission would be cancelled while a final decision on reservation remained pending and that the state government would bear the full tuition fees of affected students.
He added that the remaining Rs 300 crore allocation for the Annasaheb Patil Economic Backward Development Corporation would be released immediately, with the government assuring continued financial support for the body.
(With inputs from IANS)
