The NDA government of Maharashtra took two major decisions on Thursday. On one hand, it has decided to give constitutional status to the State Scheduled Caste Commission, while on the other hand it has recommended to the Central Government to increase the limit of OBC creamy layer to Rs 15 lakh. At present this limit is only Rs 8 lakh. A decision has been taken by the Central Backward Classes Commission, under which 19 OBC castes and sub-castes of Maharashtra have been included in the backward list of the Centre. These castes include Gurjar, Lodh, Dangri, Bhoyar etc.
How many castes will benefit from these decisions can be a subject of separate study. But the important thing is that this decision of the Eknath Shinde led government can change the electoral equations. There are preparations for elections in the state next month and elections can be announced any time next week. Experts believe that the number of 19 OBC castes which have been included in the central list is such that they can change the election results in about 30 seats. Similarly, there are about a dozen such seats, where the population of people from Dalit community is so high that they can change the electoral trend.
Keeping all these equations in mind, the plan of ‘Mission 40’ has been prepared. The alliance of BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP feels that with these decisions they will be successful in changing the equations of the state. A major reason for these decisions is the Maratha movement going on in the state for the last several years. There has been movement for Maratha reservation many times under the leadership of Manoj Jarange Patil and once again the discussion is intensifying. It is believed that Maratha population in the state is about 30 percent. If a large part of them is angry with the government, then losses are certain.
Will there now be Marathas and non-Marathas in Maharashtra like in Haryana?
Sensing such a situation, BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP are already on alert. All three parties want to woo the OBC and SC classes to counter the Maratha movement. Apart from this, efforts will be made to reduce the anger by giving priority to the Maras in the areas where they are in majority in ticket distribution. In a way, this strategy is similar to that of Haryana. There too, BJP had tried to woo other OBC castes like Gurjar, Kashyap, Saini, Kumhar, Goldsmith etc. to curb the anger among the Jats.
