Over 360 people have been booked, a day after a protest over Maratha quota turned violent in Maharashtra’s Jalna injuring at least 40 police personnel as well as civilians, for their alleged involvement in the violence, reports PTI.
Violence was reported on Friday at Antarwali Sarathi village on Dhule-Solapur road in Ambad tehsil, around 75 km from Aurangabad, following which police used baton-charge and fired teargas shells to disperse the mob. Police said that the incident took place between 6 pm and 8 pm on Friday.
The protesters, led by Manoj Jarange, a local Maratha leader, had been staging a hunger strike demanding reservation for the Maratha community at the village since Tuesday. On Friday, police tried to shift Jarange to a hospital on doctor’s advice, and the agitation turned violent as some persons allegedly targeted state transport buses and private vehicles, according to police.
Police said that the protesters torched at least 15 state transport buses and some private vehicles, and around 40 police personnel were injured in the violence.
A senior police officer said that an offence was registered at Gondi police station in Jalna against 16 agitators, who have been identified, and around 350 others for their involvement in the Friday violence.
Police said that cases were filed under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 307 (attempt to murder), 333 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and others.
Meanwhile, on Saturday agitators remained firm on their demand and that they would continue their stir till the government provided reservation to the Maratha community, and also questioned the police action against their “peaceful” agitation and asked why they fired bullets in the air and lathi-charged the protesters.
Following the incident, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde appealed to maintain peace.
“The incident of lathicharge on the Maratha reservation protesters is unfortunate. I have taken information of the incident from the district collector and the police superintendent and have ordered an inquiry into the matter. I appeal to the people to maintain peace,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Later in the evening, Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the government requested the protesters to withdraw their protest. “We are taking up the reservation matter seriously and we are taking up the case in the Supreme Court. The issue is such that it cannot be resolved in a day,” he said, as quoted by The Indian Express.
He also claimed that the police were forced to use baton-charge due to stone pelting.
The reservation provided by the state government for the politically dominant Maratha community was quashed by the Supreme Court earlier.
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Antarwali Sarathi village on Saturday, Jarange said, “The hunger strike won’t be called off now. Our sisters and the entire village have been protesting in a peaceful manner. The CM has formed a committee over the Maratha reservation, but it has not submitted a report and hence we are agitating.”
Showing a bullet in hand he said, “These bullets were fired and we were lathi-charged inhumanly. Women were also beaten up. Are we Pakistanis or do we have relatives in that country? Why did they fire? We will not stop until we get a reservation, let (CM) Shinde fire as many bullets as he wants,” as quoted by PTI.