Maharashtra Cabinet sub-committee to give recommendations on issues faced by Dhangars,OBCs

Addressing the media on Friday, Maharashtra Minister Vijay Wadettiwar announced that the state government has decided to form a Cabinet sub-committee. The committee will provide recommendations to address the problems faced by the OBC and Dhangar community. This decision was taken after a meeting with leaders of the OBC and Dhangar communities.

Wadettiwar added that the names of the members of the sub-committee will be declared later. While the OBC community is entitled to 19% reservation in Maharashtra, the Dhangars get 3.5% reservation under Vimukti Jati and Nomadic Tribe Category C. There has been a longstanding demand for the Dhangar community to be listed under the ST category. 

Read: Mumbai's Dabbawalas & Kranti Morcha Protest In Thane Demanding Maratha Reservation

BJP slams Pawar over Dhangar reservation 

The politics over the Dhangar reservation issue came to the fore in June after BJP MLC Gopichand Padalkar lashed out at NCP supremo Sharad Pawar. Claiming that Pawar wanted to politicise the issue for his own gain, he alleged that the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government had not provided any money for the upliftment of the Dhangar community. In a veiled reference to the state government's support for the Maratha reservation, Padalkar accused it of harbouring double standards for different communities.

He also warned of commencing a statewide agitation on behalf of the Dhangar community after the COVID-19 situation normalises. Responding to Padalkar's accusations, Maharashtra Social Justice Minister Dhananjay Munde strongly defended Pawar. Moreover, he contended that the former had to say such things to repay the BJP for giving him a ticket to the Maharashtra Legislative Council. 

Read: Amid Quota Setback In SC, MVA Govt Extends Benefit Of EWS Reservation To Maratha Community

BJP MLC Gopichand Padalkar remarked, "Sharad Pawar is Maharashtra's Corona. Because for the last many years, he has been leading Maharashtra. He has always taken a stance of committing atrocities on the state's backward classes and will continue to do so in the future, He doesn't have an ideology, agenda, or vision. He instigates smaller communities, takes them on his side, and then commits injustice with them. I don't think that he will be positive about the demand of reservation for the Dhangar community. He only wants to politicise the reservation for the Dhangar community."

Read: Maratha Reservation: Maharashtra Govt Files Petition In SC Seeking Vacation Of Stay Order