Maratha Quota Stir: Agitators target houses of 2 MLAs

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Violence and arson gripped the ongoing agitation seeking reservation for the Maratha community as pro-quota protesters on Monday set on fire the residence of NCP MLA Prakash Solanke and also hurled stones at it, torched a municipal council building and vandalised the office of another legislator in Maharashtra, police said.

The incidents of violence and arson were reported from central Maharashtra's Beed and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar districts even as Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange continued his indefinite fast in support of the reservation demand at a village in Jalna district. No casualties were reported. The residence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA Solanke at Majalgaon town in Beed district was set on fire and stones were hurled at it by a group of quota agitators late in the morning, police said. The group also set ablaze a car parked at the residence of Solanke after an audio clip of the MLA, in which he purportedly spoke about the Maratha quota agitation and made a veiled comment on the fasting quota activist Jarange, went viral.

It is not clear whether the Majalgaon MLA, who belongs to the NCP faction led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, was present inside the residence at the time of the incident which occurred at around 11 am.

Reacting to the incident Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said, "Manoj Jarange Patil (Maratha reservation activist) should take note of the fact what turn this protest is taking. It is going in the wrong direction." He also cautioned people against inciting violence in the name of Maratha reservation and said that due to certain people, suspicion is being cast on the entire movement. NCP MP Supriya Sule blamed the state government for the attack. "This is a complete failure of the home minister of Maharashtra and the government. This is the failure of triple engine govt in Maharashtra. Today an MLA's house is set on fire, what is the home ministry and home minister doing? It is their responsibility," Sule said.

Members of the Maratha community have been staging protests seeking reservation in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. The agitation has intensified after Jarange sat on an indefinite fast from October 25 at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district as part of the second phase of the protest.