Manoj Jarange’s Mumbai march faces health hurdle amid hunger strike

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, who is travelling towards Mumbai, said on Wednesday that his tour could be called off due to health problems caused by prolonged travel and his ongoing hunger strike.

Jarange reached Patoda in Maharashtra’s Beed district around 11 am, nearly 14 hours after leaving Antarwali Sarati in Jalna, where he began his latest round of agitation. He later addressed a gathering there.

The activist said he was experiencing a severe burning sensation in his stomach and feet.


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"If I take treatment, the government becomes completely carefree. If I stop treatment, they become tense. This tour to Mumbai is taking a toll on my health. I can continue if I'm fine, but such long travel is not good amid a hunger strike. The tour can also be cancelled if there is no option," he said.

Mumbai police had earlier denied permission to Jarange to take his protest to Azad Maidan. He has been on a hunger strike for the last 18 days, demanding OBC quota for Maratha community members with Kunbi caste genealogies. Police cited law and order concerns during the ongoing Ganesh festival.

Despite the denial, Jarange set out for Mumbai on Tuesday in a convoy of cars, with hundreds of villagers joining along the route to show their support.

"Reservation is more important than the tour, which seems impossible because of the burning sensation in my stomach and feet," he told the crowd in Patoda on Wednesday.

Jarange also asked his supporters to allow him to travel to Mumbai alone.

"No vehicle should follow me from Patoda. Please let me go alone. If they continue to follow me, I will change my route and go to Mumbai. I will only keep the police informed. If I am not allowed to enter Mumbai, then you all can come," he said.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had said on Tuesday that maintaining law and order was the responsibility of the police and questioned the timing of the agitation during the Ganesh festival.

Fadnavis said the government had accepted 12 of the 13 "legally valid" demands raised by Maratha protesters.

Under his current plan, Jarange’s carcade will travel through Beed, Srigonda in Ahilyanagar, Hadapsar in Pune and Khopoli in Raigad district before reaching Azad Maidan in Mumbai on September 19. The journey covers more than 400 km.

Jarange had led a major five-day protest and hunger strike at Azad Maidan on August 29, 2025, seeking Kunbi (OBC) caste certificates for eligible Marathas. The protest ended on September 2, 2025, after the state government accepted six of eight demands and began administrative steps for issuing Kunbi classification certificates.