Munde Assures OBCs Will Not Be Sidelined amid Maratha Quota Row
Her remarks came after the first meeting of the newly formed cabinet sub-committee on OBC welfare, which is chaired by BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule.
Mumbai: Maharashtra minister Pankaja Munde on Wednesday assured that the state government would not sideline the concerns of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) amid ongoing tensions over the Maratha reservation issue.
Her remarks came after the first meeting of the newly formed cabinet sub-committee on OBC welfare, which is chaired by BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule. The panel has been tasked with addressing the apprehensions of the OBC community, which has expressed unease over the implications of extending reservation benefits to the Maratha population.
Ms. Munde said, “Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has always taken decisions that protect the interests of the OBC community in the state. We had a detailed discussion about the status of OBCs in Maharashtra. No concerns of the OBCs will be ignored.”
The state government has announced the committee to issue Kunbi caste certificates to Maratha community members with historical evidence of their Kunbi heritage, a social group classified as OBC in the state.
The move has come after the State Social Justice and Special Assistance Department issued the government resolution (GR) on implementing the Hyderabad gazetteer, which will allow eligible members of the Maratha community to apply for Kunbi caste certificates. This will enable them to claim quota under the OBC category after certificates are issued.
However, the move has enraged the OBCs with senior minister Chhagan Bhujbal opposing the inclusion of Marathas in the OBC category, insisting that the quota available to backward classes should not be diluted.
Ms. Munde noted that Maharashtra currently has nearly 350 castes classified as OBCs. She said the sub-committee also reviewed various welfare schemes, direct benefit transfers, and budgetary allocations for the community. “We discussed multiple programmes designed for OBCs — both direct and indirect benefit schemes — and ways to strengthen them,” she added.
The committee is expected to hold further consultations with community leaders and experts before submitting its recommendations to the government.
