Amruta Fadnavis invites 'brother' Manoj Jarange home for a meal; will go on Bhaubeej, says activist

Nagpur: Amruta Fadnavis, wife of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has called Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil her brother and invited him for a meal at her home.

In response, Jarange, whose hunger strike for Maratha quota at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district entered the 13th day on Thursday, said this is not the time for him to visit her.

However, if she was calling him with "affection and compassion", he will meet her during 'Bhaubeej', a festival after Diwali celebrating the bond between a brother and sister.


The activist also said he was firm about going to Mumbai to press for his demands and would spell out his plan on September 12.

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Jarange has been staging a hunger strike to demand reservation for the Maratha community under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. He has also been seeking implementation of the Hyderabad and Satara Gazette records and issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to eligible members of the Maratha community.

Asked about the activist and his protest, Amruta Fadnavis told reporters in Nagpur on Wednesday night, "Jarange Patil ji is my brother, and I invite him to come for a meal at our home."

To a query about the invitation, Jarange responded that if his "sister" was calling him with "compassion and affection", he would accept her invitation, but not while his protest was underway.

"If the brother is agitating, the sister should not call at this moment for food. The brother will have a problem. The sister should think about it and call me on Bhaubeej...will go with a saree (for her), and this is my word," he told reporters at his protest venue in Antarwali Sarati village.

He added that if someone speaks with good intent, there is no need to question it every time.

"If you are calling me from the battlefield, then I have to accept defeat. If someone is saying something with a good feeling, there is no need to take it otherwise every time. But this is not the time to go on her invitation because the brother is currently fighting for the kids of poor people. Will definitely go during Bhaubeej," he added.

Asked about no government representatives coming to meet him, Jarange said he did not wait for anyone in the past three years of his agitation for Maratha quota.

"I am agitating on my own capacity. The (government's) delegation will behave according to the way they are guided. It is ok when there is one guide. If guides from various thought schools come together, it creates a mess,'' he quipped.

Reiterating his plan, Jarange said, "I am definitely going to Mumbai and will declare the date on September 12. Nothing will be hidden."

Jarange's five-day protest at Azad Maidan in Mumbai from August 29 last year caused severe traffic congestion and was called off on September 2 after the state government accepted six of his eight demands.

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Amid Jarange's protest for Maratha quota, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said the government would grant whatever is permissible under the Constitution but would not take from one community's share to give another.

"We will do everything that is possible. We have never closed the doors for dialogue. A government finds a solution through discussions, and the entire process is moving forward in that spirit," he had said.

Amruta Fadnavis on Wednesday also said festivals are inclusive and there is nothing wrong if a Muslim person attends the celebrations.

Her comments came after state minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane backed VHP's call to bar Muslims from Navratri events.