As CM Devendra Fadnavis defends minister Bawankule, Jarange Patil warns of hunger strike in Mumbai
Jarange Patil said he wants to hold his next hungerstrike in Antarwali-Saraati against the cancellation of four Kunbi certificates given to elected representatives of Maratha community.
On the allegations made by Manoj Jarange-Patil (middle) against Chandrashekar Bawankule (right), CM Devendra Fadnavis (left) on Tuesday said, “It is not right to target a minister. (Express photo) Even as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended Revenue Minister Chandrashekar Bawankule against allegations of cancelling Kunbi certificates, Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil has warned of holding his next hungerstrike in Mumbai, preferably at “Varsha” bungalow, the official residence of the CM.
On the allegations made by Jarange-Patil against Bawankule, Fadnavis on Tuesday said, “It is not right to target a minister. He has not done anything deliberately. When any complaint is received by a minister, conducting a proper inquiry into it is a responsibility entrusted to a minister by the Constitution. The committee constituted in the Maratha reservation matter works entirely on the basis of evidence. This committee is not bound to the government; it is bound solely to the court and does not submit its report to the government. Therefore, targeting a minister in this manner simply because he belongs to the ‘OBC’ community is not right. This does not befit the culture of Maharashtra.”
Fadnavis added, “I am stating this very clearly… The government runs strictly according to the Constitution, it does not run under any pressure. However, the government is always ready to listen to everyone’s views. The historic work our government has done for the Maratha community has not been done by any other government till date.”
Responding to the CM’s defence of Bawankule, Jarange Patil, speaking in Karad, said, “Instead of defending Bawankule for the wrong which he has done, the chief minister should have instead warned the minister. He should have told the minister that he should not harass the Maratha community in this manner.”
Speaking to reporters in Karad, where he held his last rally of his Western Maharashtra tour, Jarange Patil said he wants to hold his next hungerstrike in Antarwali-Saraati against the cancellation of four Kunbi certificates given to elected representatives of Maratha community. ”However, my followers are insisting that I should hold the hungerstrike in Mumbai and that too at ”Varsha” bungalow. If the government does not accept our demands before August 19, I will certainly be holding my hungerstrike,” he said.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Jarange Patil sought to know from Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar whether he had been asked by his leader Rahul Gandhi to attack the Marathas verbally. “Did Rahul Gandhi tell you to criticise me?,” Jarange asked at a rally in Sangli.
The activist said Congress has a few good leaders, which has kept it going in Maharashtra. “Congress is doing somewhat okay because of two or four people — Amit Deshmukh, Balasaheb Thorat, Prithviraj Chavan, Harshwardhan Sapkal and Nana Patole. Why are you disrupting this whole game?” he asked.
Stating that he will secure reservation at any cost, Jarange Patil asked Wadettiwar, “Did Rahul Gandhi tell you to speak against the Marathas? Congress is no longer even countable on fingers… No matter how much you speak, I am going to secure the reservation anyway. Why are you destroying Congress?”
Wadettiwar had recently said that the government was afraid of Jarange Patil. “As a government, there should be a firm stance regarding Jarange Patil’s provocative statements, but that is not visible. The government is rolling out red carpets for him. When he goes on a hungerstrike for just a day, four ministers go to meet him, which has boosted his courage, and now the government is facing the consequences,” he said.
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