Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil, who is on a hunger strike and led the Maratha protest seeking reservations for the community refused to end strike and called for a meeting of the Maratha community on Wednesday over the recent developments.
The Maharashtra Assembly unanimously passed the Maratha reservation bill providing a 10 per cent quota for Marathas in education and government jobs on Tuesday. The bill extends the quota for Marathas above the 50 per cent reservation cap.
However, Patil said that the decision of the government has been taken by keeping election and votes in mind.
"This is a betrayal to the Maratha community...Maratha community won't trust you. We will benefit only from our original demands. Make a law on ‘sage-soyare’...This reservation won't hold. The Government will now lie that the reservation has been given," Patil told ANI.
Patil, who has been on hunger strike since February 10, said that the next round of agitation will be decided after the meeting with the community leaders.
Meanwhile, the Congress also hit out against the Shinde government and called the exercise as "farce" ahead of the elections.
"The law on the Maratha reservation was passed earlier also, but it was rejected by the Supreme Court. This (the passage of the bill) was done conveniently before polls. The legislation will not stand the test of law," Leader of Opposition in the state legislative assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar, told reporters.
"This is a farce to win elections. The government has deceived the Maratha community and OBCs," he alleged.
The government recently issued a draft notification which said if a Maratha person has documentary proof to show that he or she belongs to the Kunbi community, the person's 'sage soyre' or blood relatives too would get Kunbi caste certificates.
The Kunbi community falls in the OBC category, and Jarange has been demanding that Kunbi certificates be issued to all Marathas.
One of the key findings in the bill tabled by CM Shinde says that the population of the Maratha community in the state is 28 per cent.
