Ajit Pawar, quota activist Jarange were newsmakers Maharashtra politics 2023: Report

Manoj Jarange (left) and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar (Right)

In 2023, the political situation in Maharashtra was dominated by quota politics, spearheaded by activist Manoj Jarange, who fought for Maratha reservations. However, the situation generated difficulties among OBC leaders, who emphasised the importance of preserving existing OBC reservations while considering Maratha quotas, as stated in a report in PTI.

According to the report, the quota agitation made it to the headlines after the cops lathi-charged the protesters at the venue of Manoj Jarange's hunger strike at his village in Maharashtra's Latur district in September. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has promised a parliamentary session to settle the Maratha quota issue.

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Ajit Pawar, like Eknath Shinde before him, sided with Shiv Sena-BJP, assuming the job of second deputy chief minister with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis. However, before coming out in public against his uncle Sharad Pawar, Ajit Pawar had given a letter to the Election Commission claiming he was the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party and not his uncle which triggered a dispute over the party like it did with Shiv Sena which was put to rest in February this year, the PTI report added.

According to the report, this volatile dynamic sets the stage for Maharashtra's impending Lok Sabha and assembly elections, which are critical given the state's 48 Lok Sabha seats.

As Ajit Pawar asserted the NCP presidency, a legal fight erupted, prompting an Election Commission debate on the true NCP faction. Previously, the EC gave Shinde's side the Shiv Sena name and symbol, while the Supreme Court's order on disqualification petitions against Sena MLAs was extended till January 10, 2024, the report added.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court's anticipated reconsideration of the Maratha quota on January 24 coincides with Jarange's planned hunger strike in Mumbai beginning January 20 in support of Kunbi caste certificates for all Marathas.

While political leaders prepare for elections in 2024, analysts such as Senior Congress politician Ratnakar Mahajan told PTI that he predicts increased division and disarray.

Analysts believe that purposely inflamed caste divisions may affect the elections, but the BJP's Madhav Bhandari downplays their possible impact, the PTI report stated. Bhandari, reportedly cited the recent Gram Panchayat elections as evidence of the situation's superficial effect on the broader electoral environment since the ruling alliance claimed to have done well even though panchayat elections are not contested on party lines.