Mumbai: Mumbai may be heading for an anxious situation on the occasion of Republic Day as the Maharashtra police have denied Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil a permission to hold his protests at Azad Maidan in the city on January 26. As the activist is set to enter Mumbai on Friday, the police have instead asked him to move the protest to Navi Mumbai's Kharghar to avoid traffic congestion.
Jarange, who is leading an agitation for reservation for the Maratha community in education and jobs, has been on a march from his native village Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district since January 20. Calling the march to Mumbai as his last struggle, Jarange had called the entire Maratha community to converge at the state capital to show their strength.
The activist had sought permission from police to hold the agitation at Azad Maidan. However, the police said that Azad Maidan only has a capacity of 5 to 6 thousand people and it would not be able to accommodate such a large gathering.
The Mumbai Police on Thursday issued a notice to Jarange which said, “Mumbai’s daily traffic will be affected if a large number of vehicles, which are part of the agitation, enter the densely populated city.”
As per a Bombay High Court order, only 7,000 square metre area at Azad Maidan is reserved for any kind of agitation and the site can accommodate a maximum of 5,000 to 6,000 protesters. If a large number of agitators come to Azad Maidan, there will not be enough space to accommodate them and no facilities will be available for them, said the notice.
For holding an agitation at Shivaji Park in Dadar, permission of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner is required. Holding agitation, rally or any programme at Shivaji Park without the BMC commissioner's nod will amount to contempt of court and the sprawling ground in central Mumbai will be a key venue for Republic Day celebrations on January 26. Shivaji Park, too, does not have the capacity to accommodate a large gathering, said the police in the notice.
However, Jarange’s followers are firm on holding the protests at Azad Maidan. When asked if he had got permission from the police for Azad Maidan, Jarange too said a stage was being erected at the site, indicating he had not changed his plans.
Two government delegations met Jarange on Thursday, but the activist said that they had nothing new to offer. He also urged chief minister Eknath Shinde and his deputies Devendra Fadnavis and Ajti Pawar to come together and solve the issue of the Maratha reservation.