September 1,2025 — The ongoing hunger strike by Maratha activist Manoj Jarange Patil at Azad Maidan has caused severe traffic disruptions across South Mumbai, prompting the Bombay High Court to order the state government to clear occupied streets by September 2.
Jarange, who began his indefinite fast on August 29, is demanding reservation for the Maratha community under the OBC category. Despite conditional permission from police to limit the gathering to 5,000 supporters and avoid road blockages, protesters have spilled onto major junctions, bringing traffic around CSMT, Churchgate, and Mantralaya to a halt.
The High Court on Monday expressed concern over the “grim” situation in the city, observing that the demonstration had gone beyond permissible limits. It said continued road occupation amounted to a breach of conditions and warned authorities against allowing additional protesters into Mumbai.
Jarange has escalated his agitation by announcing that he will stop consuming water, intensifying pressure on the state government. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, however, maintained that any quota decision must comply with legal and constitutional provisions, ruling out arbitrary inclusion of Marathas in the OBC list.
Meanwhile, several OBC organisations have launched counter-protests, arguing that accommodating Marathas in the OBC category would dilute existing reservations. Groups such as the Rashtriya OBC Mahasangh and Sakal OBC Samaj have warned the government against “succumbing to pressure politics.”
The agitation has triggered concerns over law and order in Mumbai as the state faces a balancing act between Maratha demands and OBC opposition. With the court deadline set for Tuesday, the government is under pressure to restore normalcy while seeking a legally viable resolution to the decades-old Maratha reservation issue.
