Reservation History in Maharashtra: The issue of Maratha reservation in Maharashtra has been in constant discussion for many years. In 2023-24, this movement came out with a new strength, when rallies, hunger strikes and demonstrations took place under the leadership of Manoj Jarange Patil. Millions of people joined it and increased pressure on the government. As a result, the government opened the way for OBC reservation by giving ‘Kunbi’ certificate to the Marathas of Marathwada region. In September 2025, the state government recognized the ‘Hyderabad Gazette’ and started the process of distribution of certificate by making committees at the village level, so that the eligible people can get the benefit of quick reservation. The Maratha community, which is about one-third of the state’s total population, has been demanding reservation on the basis of economic and educational backwardness for a long time.
History of Maratha community
The Maratha community is traditionally known as a warrior and peasant caste. Shivaji Maharaj and Marathas played an important role in the history of the whole of India during the Peshwa period. Even after independence, the Maratha society maintained a strong hold on politics, cooperative banks and rural economy. But after 1990, the situation started changing. A large part of the Maratha society became financially weak due to agrarian crisis, decline of cooperative institutions and growth of industries. Unemployment and insecurity increased due to migration to cities, deficit in farming, lack of government jobs for youth and increasing competition in studies. For these reasons, the Maratha society, considering itself as economically and socially backward, started the demand for reservation in jobs and education and for this, the movement, the court and the government made their point.
Constitutional structure of reservation
The purpose of the reservation system in India is to provide opportunities in education and government jobs to those sections of the society which are socially and educationally backward. Articles 15 (4), 15 (5) and 16 (4) of the Constitution make special provisions for this. Already reservation for OBC, SC and ST classes is already applicable in Maharashtra. The total reservation limit in the state is 52% which includes reservation of all classes. The Supreme Court has generally fixed the reservation limit 50%, but in some states like Maharashtra it has been slightly higher i.e. up to 52%.
History and form of reservation in Maharashtra
Reservation in Maharashtra started soon after the constitution came into force. Its purpose was to give opportunity in education and jobs to those sections of the society which were socially and educationally backward. Most reservation between 1950 and 1990 was for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST). Later, other backward classes (OBC – Other Backward Classes) were also given the benefit of reservation from the 1980s. With all this, the total reservation in Maharashtra increased to about 52%.
Changes after Mandal Commission
The reservation system in Maharashtra became wide after the recommendations of the Mandal Commission in the 1990s. Earlier, where only Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) used to get reservation, now the Other Backward Classes (OBC) also started getting 27% reservation in government jobs and education. After this, about 13%to the Scheduled Castes in Maharashtra, 7%to the Scheduled Tribes, about 3%to the Vim -free caste/Bhatya Jamati (VJNT), 19%to the Other Backward Classes and 2%to the Special Backward Classes (SBC). Due to which the total reservation in the state reached about 44%. The Mandal Commission report was prepared in 1980 and was implemented in 1990. This report measured social and economic backwardness and included about 52% of the population in the backward castes. The Supreme Court also justified this reservation keeping in the limit of 50%.
Demand for Maratha reservation for the first time
The history of demand for Maratha reservation has been going on for a long time. It started in March 1981 when the demand for Maratha reservation was raised for the first time and the same year Anantasaheb Patil committed suicide in support of this demand. After this, the State Backward Classes Commission was formed for the first time in 1995. In the year 2000, the suggestion of inclusion of Kunbi system in the OBC was given in the Tevhar report. In the year 2008, the demand for Maratha reservation was raised vigorously and there were large-scale agitations to bring it back. In 2013, Narayan Rane Committee was formed for reservation.
Maratha reservation starts
The demand for Maratha reservation was going on since the 1990s but it got the real pace after 2014. In 2014, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan’s government (Congress-NCP government) decided to give 16% reservation in education and government jobs to the Maratha community on the recommendation of a special committee. However, this decision was challenged in the Bombay High Court and in November 2014, the court stayed it.
Fadnavis government’s effort
After this, in 2018, the government of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis passed the law to give 16% reservation as ‘social and educationally backward class’ (SEBC) to the Marathas. But this law also later faced a legal challenge in the High Court and the Supreme Court.
High court decision
In June 2019, the Bombay High Court approved Maratha reservation, but reduced the amount of reservation to 12% in education and 13% in government jobs. This decision was challenged in the Supreme Court.
Historical decision of Supreme Court
In May 2021, a five -judge constitution bench canceled the Maratha reservation. The court said that there is not enough concrete evidence to prove the Maratha community backward. Also, the court reiterated the 1992 Indra Sahni (Mandal) case, reiterating that the reservation limit cannot usually exceed 50% unless there is a very special situation. Since Maharashtra already had more than 50% reservation, the Supreme Court termed Maratha reservation as unconstitutional.
Manoj Jarange Patil’s movement
The Maratha reservation movement gained momentum between 2023 and 2025. Millions of people led by Manoj Jarange Patil participated in hunger strike, rallies and big demonstrations. Due to this pressure, the Maharashtra government opened the way to give the benefit of OBC reservation to the Marathas of Marathwada region by giving them a ‘kunbi’ certificate. In September 2025, the government recognized the ‘Hyderabad Gazette’ and formally started the process of certificate distribution. Under this, committees have been constituted at the village level, which will check the documents and decide the eligibility and issue the certificate. The purpose of this process is to make the process of giving certificates to Maratha society simple, transparent and quick. To get the certificate, applicants have to prove that their ancestors had agricultural land before 21 November 1961 or they already lived in the area, for which the old revenue records, government documents or affidavits would be valid. With this decision, a large part of Maratha society has opened the way for reservation benefits under OBC category.
Current status
Maharashtra already had 62% reservation and with new reservation, the total limit of reservation in Maharashtra has reached about 72%. In this, Scheduled Castes (SC) is being given 13%, Scheduled Tribes (ST) 7%, Vim -free caste and Bhatya Jamati (VJNT) 3%, Other Backward Classes (OBC) 19%, Special Backward Classes (SBC) 2%, Maratha society 10%and economically weaker class (EWS). After the 103rd Constitutional Amendment implemented by the Central Government in 2019, 10% reservation for EWS came into force, increasing the total reservation limit.
When and how many times the reservation changed
• After the Constitution came into force in 1950 in Maharashtra, reservation was made for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST).
• In 1961, the disciplined caste and Bhatya Jamati (VJNT) were included in the reservation.
• After the 1992 recommendations of the Mandal Commission, the Other Backward Classes (OBC) got 19% reservation, which led to the total reservation percentage of about 44%.
• In 2014, the Congress-NCP government tried to give 16% reservation to the Maratha society but it was canceled in the court.
• After this, in 2018, the Devendra Fadnavis government declared the Maratha community as a social and educationally backward class (SEBC) and passed the 16% reservation law, which was reduced by the High Court to 12 – 13%.
• In 2021, the Supreme Court canceled it by justifying it unconstitutional.
• Then in 2025, the Maharashtra government started the process of giving the benefit of reservation by giving a certificate to Maratha society under OBC.
