Man Holds Facebook Live In Support Of Maratha Quota, Then Dies By Suicide

A 38-year-old man allegedly died by suicide over the Maratha reservation demand in Pune district on Wednesday after conducting a Facebook Live session discussing the sensitive issue of quota allocations, police said.

The man, Prasad Dethe, was found hanging from an iron bar on a truck in Lonikand area in the early morning. A suicide note was found on his body, a police officer said.

In the handwritten note, Mr Dethe advocated for the Maratha community’s inclusion under the OBC category for reservation benefits for which Maratha activist Manoj Jarange has been agitating.

The note urged Mr Jarange to continue his agitation until the reservation was secured. It also appealed to prominent political figures such as Pankaja Munde and Chhagan Bhujbal to support Maratha quota rights, the officer added.

Before taking the extreme step, Mr Dethe conducted a ‘Facebook live’ session and spoke on the quota issue at length.

Mr Dethe worked as a security guard at a private company. He is survived by his wife and three children.

The Maratha community, led by Mr Jarange, has been demanding a quota under the OBC grouping in government jobs and education.

In February this year, the state government, during a special Assembly session, approved a bill to extend 10 per cent reservation to the Marathas, based on a report submitted by the Maharashtra Backward Class Commission (MBCC).