Lok Sabha elections 2024 are round the corner. In such a situation, the question is who can benefit politically from the ‘Maratha vs OBC’ reservation issue in Maharashtra?
On January 26, thousands of people had gathered on the streets of Mumbai. These people had come for an indefinite fast demanding Maratha reservation. But within some time these people also returned to their respective homes. Because on the same day Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced to give them Maratha reservation.
That day, the movement demanding Maratha reservation ended, but the foundation of a new movement (OBC reservation) was also laid. In fact, Shinde government gave assurance that till the issue of reservation to Marathas is not resolved completely, they will be considered as Kunbi caste and will be given reservation under OBC quota.
Marathas became happy with this decision of Shinde government, but people of OBC community got angry. The OBC community says that the reservation being given to Marathas will reduce the reservation quota given to them.
Why do OBCs object to Maratha reservation?
His cabinet minister Chhagan Bhujbal became angry against this decision of Shinde government. OBC leader Chhagan Bhujbal of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar faction has said that he will protest against the government from February 1. He says that Marathas should get separate reservation and not from the OBC quota.
Chhagan Bhujbal said, ‘OBC gets 27% reservation in which there are 374 castes. Now if such a large Maratha community comes under OBC category then we are not going to get anything. We are surviving only because of reservation. Minister posts keep coming and going. I kept fighting for OBC and will keep fighting.
According to the State OBC Commission report, 38 percent of the population in Maharashtra belongs to backward class (OBC) people. According to media reports, the population of Marathas in the state is about 33 percent. That means OBC population is more. Now Maratha has also been added to this, this is the reason for the resentment.
How is Maratha society backward?
The OBC community says that the Maratha society is already prosperous. Raising questions, he said, the educational institutions of the state are in the hands of Marathas. Sugar mills are owned by Marathas. More than 60 percent MLAs are Maratha. Many Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers have been from Maratha community.
The Maratha community is considered the most influential in Maharashtra. Maharashtra was formed in the year 1960. Since then, 12 out of 20 Chief Ministers have been from the Maratha community. The current CM of the state Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar come from Maratha community.
Marathas argue that despite being socially and economically backward, they have not got the benefit of reservation in the Constitution like Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Due to lack of better opportunities for education and employment, it has become difficult to improve their social and economic condition.
Why politics of OBC and Maratha?
Maratha community has till now been the vote bank of NCP and Shiv Sena. Now CM Eknath Shinde has won the Maratha vote bank on his side with his strategy. If Shinde is successful in attracting these vote banks in the elections, then the biggest blow will be to Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray.
However, there is a very fine line between the two communities, Maratha and OBC. Many Marathas here are OBC and many fall in the general category. For example, if we talk about Sharad Pawar, he is both an OBC and a Maratha Satrap.
After Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra has the highest number of 48 Lok Sabha seats. Of these, Maratha vote is considered decisive in 20-22 seats. Similarly, Maratha vote is considered decisive in 80 out of 288 seats of Maharashtra Assembly.
This means that BJP’s allies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar have a good hold on the Marathas. At the same time, BJP itself has maintained a hold on the OBC community. However, the party is now afraid of the OBC vote bank slipping.
Barring a few places, in the 2019 elections, the votes of Maratha and OBC communities went unilaterally to the BJP-led NDA. Due to this, the alliance won 41 out of 48 seats.
If the votes are divided this time, then NDA’s problems may increase. However, the way the people of the government are opposing it, it is being said that everything will be handled in the coming time.
What is the stand of Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray?
Both Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray have been in favor of giving reservation to Marathas. He has supported the Marathas. But this time the parties of both the leaders have been divided into two pieces.
Eknath Shinde has staked his claim on Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar has staked his claim on Sharad Pawar’s NCP and both these leaders have joined the BJP-led alliance NDA.
That is, due to the division between the two big parties Shiv Sena and NCP, both have now become four parties. This has increased competition in the state. But only BJP is going to benefit from the votes coming in favor of Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar. Whether this figure is 50% or 70%.
Marathas have been demanding reservation for 32 years
32 years ago in Maharashtra, Annasaheb Patil, leader of Mathadi Labor Union, first demanded reservation for Marathas in Mumbai. Since then, Marathas have been demanding reservation from time to time. Even after huge protests in 2018, the state government had announced to give 16% reservation to Marathas.
After this the matter went to Bombay High Court. The High Court had reduced it from 16% to 13% reservation in jobs and 12% reservation in educational institutions. In 2021, the Supreme Court canceled the state government’s decision to give reservation to Marathas.
After this, the issue of Maratha reservation was raised once again in September 2023. Thousands of people started protesting in the capital Mumbai. The uproar had escalated so much that the police had to resort to lathi charge. This time their demand was that they should be given reservation from OBC quota only.
At that time the Chief Minister of the state was Eknath Shinde. To calm the atmosphere, he announced that if the Marathas of Central Maharashtra region produce certificates of being registered as Kunbi from the Nizam era, then they will get the benefit of reservation under OBC quota.
Maratha movements took place twice when Eknath Shinde was the Chief Minister, but he did not allow the Maratha community to turn against him. The way Marathas are solving the reservation issue, Shinde’s image is emerging as a Maratha messiah. BJP will directly benefit from this in the elections.