Hours after announcing that he would back 10 to 15 candidates in the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly election, Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil made a U-turn today and said he would not participate in the polls. Mr Patil said he held discussions and reached the conclusion that he would only work against those who did not “give justice to Marathas”.
“It is not possible to contest and win an election on the strength of one caste. We are new in politics. If we field a candidate and he loses, it will be a shame for the caste. Therefore, I request all the Maratha candidates to withdraw their nomination,” he told the media.
The 42-year-old activist, who made national headlines during his hunger strike demanding reservation benefits for Marathas, had earlier said he would support candidates challenging MLAs of the BJP-led Mahayuti in the Marathwada region. This region includes Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Beed, Hingoli, Jalna, Latur, Nanded, Osmanabad and Parbhani districts.
Manoj Jarange-Patil’s decision to withdraw from the election is likely to benefit the Maha Vikas Aghadi of Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP as it would prevent the division of anti-BJP votes.
