Maharashtra Assembly Passes Bill Providing 10% Quota to Marathas In Jobs, Education | 10 Points

maharashtra assembly passes maratha reservation bill ten per cent quota to marathas in jobs, education

Mumbai: The Maharashtra legislative assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed the Maratha Reservation Bill, which proposes to extend reservations to the community above the 50 per cent mark. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde tabled the Bill in the day-long special session state legislative assembly today. The CM will now table the bill in the Legislative council for assent after which it becomes a law.

The Maharashtra State Socially and Educationally Backward Bill 2024 proposed a 10 per cent reservation to the Maratha community in education and government jobs.

Eknath Shinde said, “This is a historic day. I will fulfill the promise I made before Chhatrapati Shivaji’s statue to provide for the Maratha quota.”

He added, “I am the son of an ordinary Maratha farmer. I understand their pain. We worked on the legal aspects and other quotas will not be affected.”

The CM further said that the OBC quota will not be affected and the government will also ensure the quota for Marathas passes legal hurdle.

The Bill, once enacted, could be reviewed after 10 years of implementation. Celebrations were witnessed outside the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in Mumbai after the Maratha reservation bill was unanimously passed after tabling in special Assembly session.

Maratha Quota Bill Passed | 10 Points

1. The Maharashtra government has convened a one-day special session of the state legislature for tabling and further consideration of this special Bill.
2. The reservation has been extended based on a report submitted to the state government by the Maharashtra Backward Class Commission (MBCC) headed by chairman Justice (Retired) Sunil Shukre.
3. Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar, said the opposition parties were also of the same view that the Maratha community be given the reservation.
4. This is the third time in a decade that the state has introduced legislation for the Maratha quota.
5. The decision to convene a special session was prompted by Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil, who is on a hunger strike at Antarwali Saarati village in Jalna district.
6. Manoj Jarange Patil removed the IV from his arm and said he will continue his hunger strike protest.
7. “I am demanding to implement ‘Sage Soyare’. The next round of agitation will be announced tomorrow, says Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil.
8. Among his demands are Kunbi certificates for all Marathas, free education from kindergarten to postgraduate level, and reservation of seats for Marathas in government job recruitments.
9. The Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission on Friday submitted a report on the social and educational backwardness of the Maratha community for which it had undertaken a survey of around 2.5 crore homes within only nine days.
10. On May 5, 2021, the Supreme Court struck down reservations for the Maratha community in colleges, higher educational institutions, and jobs, after noting that there was no valid ground to breach 50 per cent reservation while granting Maratha reservation.

(With inputs from ANI)