The Maharashtra Assembly today unanimously passed the Maratha Reservation Bill, a law that will provide 10 percent reservation for the Maratha community in both education and government jobs. The Maharashtra State Socially and Educationally Backward Bill 2024, once enacted, will undergo a thorough review after a decade of implementation.
The decision has been taken after a comprehensive report submitted by the Maharashtra State Backward Classes Commission, which is based on a survey covering approximately 2.5 crore families. The survey carefully examines the social, economic and educational backwardness faced by the Maratha community in the state.
According to the report, the share of Maratha community in the population of Maharashtra is 28 percent. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said, “The survey has been conducted on about 2-2.5 crore people. We have called a special session of the Assembly on February 20 after which Maratha reservation will be given as per the law.”
The urgency to pass the bill was inspired by the hunger strike of Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, who started his protest on February 10. Mr. Jarange’s persistent demand for a special legislative session to discuss the Maratha quota issue gained momentum, culminating in. Recent tabling of the bill.
The primary objective of the new law is to address the economic struggles experienced by the Maratha community. The survey shows that 21.22 percent Maratha families are below the poverty line, higher than the state average of 17.4 percent. Additionally, 84 per cent of Maratha families do not fall in the ‘progressive’ category, which makes them eligible for the reservation mentioned in the Bill.
The survey also shows that Maratha families are involved in 94 percent of farmer suicides in Maharashtra.
Historically, attempts by state governments to implement reservations for Marathas have faced legal challenges, with previous attempts rejected by the courts. However, the persistence of the protests and the political importance of the Maratha community have repeatedly revived this sensitive issue, given that the community constitutes a significant portion of Maharashtra’s population.
Mr Jarange today said it does not matter whether the Maharashtra government gives 10 or 20 per cent reservation, as long as the quota falls under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category and is not separate.
“The government is giving us what we do not want. We want reservation in the Other Backward Class (OBC) category, but they are giving us a separate quota instead. If the government does not discuss this and implement the draft notification, The activist was quoted by news agency PTI as saying, “We will decide the direction of the movement tomorrow on the issue of reservation for blood relatives of Kunbi Marathas.”
“A separate reservation outside the OBC category could face legal challenges, as it could exceed the reservation limit of 50 per cent,” he said.
The Maharashtra government has recently issued a draft notification allowing Maratha individuals to claim affiliation from the peasant Kunbi community. According to the notification, if a Maratha person can provide documentary evidence of belonging to the Kunbi community, their blood relatives will also be eligible for the Kunbi caste certificate. The Kunbi community falls in the Other Backward Class (OBC) category, and the move has faced both support and opposition.
