Maratha Quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil said today that he would launch an indefinite fast on January 25 to increase pressure on Devendra Fadnavis government to accept the Maratha community’s demands for reservation in jobs and education under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.

Manoj Jarange-Patil urged the members of the Maratha community to attend the protest in large numbers. He said that no one should stay at home, and they should come to Antarwali Sarthi (village). He added that they must show their collective strength. However, he mentioned that there will be no compulsion or pressure on anyone.

The Maratha Quota activist accused the state government of cheating and said it failed to fulfil its promises to the Maratha community. He said that the community will not spare the government if they don’t meet their demands during the ongoing winter session.

He further demanded that the state government implement the draft notification that recognises the Kunbis as related by birth or marriage to the Marathas (sage soyare) and grant reservations to the latter under the OBC category.

Manoj Patil also demanded that the state speed up the work undertaken by the Justice (retd) Sandeep Shinde Committee. The Mahayuti government formed the committee to expedite the process of granting Kunbi certificates to the Marathas, which makes them eligible for reservations.

Furthermore, the 42-year-old activist, stressed on the same demand, went on six hunger strikes last year. Notably, in February 2024, the Mahayuti government unanimously passed a bill providing 10% reservation for the Marathas in education and government jobs under a separate category.

Nonetheless, Jarange has been insisting on a quota for the community under the OBC head. The agrarian Kunbi community already receives quota benefits under the OBC category.

Previously, before voting in the Maharashtra assembly election, Patil withdrew his list of candidates and decided to support the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) against the Mahayuti alliance.

He  withdrew from the fray as he had not received a response from smaller allies representing castes like the Dalits and Muslims. He had been banking on them to field candidates as part of his plan. Additionally, he also said that he had realised that no election could be fought in the name of a single caste.

PM Narendra Modi today alleged that the Congress neither promoted farmers welfare nor allowed anyone to do the same. The Prime Minister was addressing an event named Ek Varsh-Parinaam Utkarsh in Jaipur to mark a year of the BJP forming the government in Rajasthan.

PM Narendra Modi also alleged that the Congress promoted river water disputes between states and cited the alleged delay in completing the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) as the direct proof of the party’s intention.

Addressing a public meeting at Dadiya, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Congress never wants to reduce water problems. He added that the water of the rivers used to flow across the borders, but the farmers did not get its benefits. Instead of finding a solution, the Congress continued to promote water disputes between states, the Prime Minister said.

He further claimed that the Congress talks big in the name of farmers but neither do they do anything for the farmers themselves, nor do they let others do it. He maintained that his party intends to promote dialogue between the states, unlike the Congress.

He added that they believe in cooperation, not opposition, and in solutions, not disruption. Therefore, their government has approved and also expanded the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project, he stated. The Prime Minister also mentioned that as soon as the BJP government was formed in MP and Rajasthan, an agreement was reached on the Parvati-Kalisindh-Chambal project.

Narendra Modi also reflected on the Sardar Sarovar Dam project in Gujarat and accused the Congress and some non-governmental organisations of adopting various tactics to stop the project. He added that the Congress never wants to reduce water problems, underlining that the water of the rivers used to flow across the borders, but the farmers did not get its benefits.

At the event, the Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for 24 projects related to energy, road, railways and water worth more than Rs 46,400 crore. He also said that the Pravati, Kalisindh, and Chambal project will provide irrigation and drinking water facilities to 21 districts of the state, and also accelerate the development of bordering regions in Madhya Pradesh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also reflected on the results of the 2024 Lok Sabha election and said the mandate to the NDA for a third consecutive term was historic. He further appreciated chief minister Bajan Lal Sharma for laying a strong foundation for the state’s development.

Arjun Ram Meghwal, Union law minister today tabled the constitutional amendment bills for holding Lok Sabha and assembly elections simultaneously in Lok Sabha.

The Union Law Minister said that The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 could be referred to a joint committee of the two Houses. 

Notably, the introduction of the bills was followed by sharp attacks by MPs of the Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the Trinamool Congress. Congress MP Manish Tewari opposed the bills for simultaneous elections in the country, mentioning that they assault the Constitution’s basic structure doctrine.

He said in the Lok Sabha that the introduction, consideration of one nation, one election bill beyond the legislative competence of this House, and urged the government to withdraw it.

Additionally, Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav opposed the bills for simultaneous polls, calling them an attempt by the BJP to bring in dictatorship in the country.

The Samajwadi Party MP said that he was not able to understand just two days ago, no stone was left unturned in the glorious tradition of saving the Constitution, and within two days, the Constitution Amendment Bill has been brought to an end the basic spirit and the basic structure of the Constitution. Agreeing with Manish Tewari, he said that on behalf of his party and his leader Akhilesh Yadav, he has no hesitation in saying that there was no one more learned than the makers of our Constitution at that time, even in this House, there was no one more learned. 

Furthermore, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee also criticised the bills, alleging that they are not to reform elections but just a fulfilment of one gentleman’s desire and dream.

He said that this proposed bill hits the basic structure of the Constitution itself and if any bill, any actual which hits the basic structure of the Constitution that is ultra vires, they must remember that the state government and the state legislative assembly are not subordinate to the Central government or to the Parliament itself.

According to a copy of the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, circulated on the night of December 13, if the Lok Sabha or any state assembly is dissolved before the end of its full term, mid-term elections will be held only for that legislature to complete the remainder of its five-year term.

Further, the bill also suggests adding Article 82(A) (simultaneous elections to the House of the People and all Legislative Assemblies) and amending Articles 83 (duration of Houses of Parliament), 172, and 327 (power of Parliament to make provisions with respect to elections to Legislatures).

It mentions that the provisions of the amendment will come into effect on an appointed date, which the President will notify on the first sitting of the Lok Sabha after a general election. As per the bill, the appointed date will be after the next Lok Sabha elections in 2029, with simultaneous elections slated to begin in 2034.

The bill specifies that the tenure of the House of the People (Lok Sabha) will be five years from the appointed date, and the tenure of all legislative assemblies elected after the appointed date will end with the tenure of the Lok Sabha.