Solapur: NCP (SP) leader Sharad Pawar on Sunday faced angry Maratha agitators in separate incidents who stopped his vehicle in Solapur district and later raised slogans and waved black flags when the veteran politician was addressing a rally in Barshi town.
Visuals aired by television channels showed a group of people raising “Maratha aarakshan” slogans stopping Pawar’s SUV near Kurduwadi village and asking him to clarify his stand on the reservation issue.
The former Maharashtra chief minister can be heard saying he supported the reservation but protesters said he was not speaking his mind on the issue.
“You have been talking for a long time about supporting reservation for the Maratha community. Why don’t you publicly declare your stand on this issue?” a protester asked Pawar.
In a separate incident which occurred within hours after Pawar’s SUV was stopped, some youths reached the venue of his rally in Barshi town and raised slogans hailing quota leader Manoj Jarange. They also showed black flags when Pawar was delivering a speech.
Confirming the incident, a Solapur Police official said four youths raised slogans supporting Jarange at Pawar’s rally. They were overpowered by security guards and police personnel and detained at the local police station.
Speaking at the rally, Pawar took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his assurance of doubling the income of farmers, claiming farmer suicides doubled under the BJP rule.
Manoj Jarange has been leading protests demanding OBC certificates for recognising all Kunbis (agriculturists) and their “sage soyre” (blood relatives) as Marathas.
In February, the Maharashtra legislature passed a bill providing 10 per cent reservation for the Maratha community in education and government jobs, but Jarange is insisting on the inclusion of Marathas in the OBC category.
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