Maratha quota stir: 38-year-old man commits suicide in Maharashtra's Nanded district, takes total toll from protests to five

Mumbai: A 38-year-old man allegedly committed suicide in Maharashtra’s Nanded district over the Maratha quota demand, police said on Tuesday. Kacharu Kalyane hanged himself from the ceiling at his home in Dhabad village of Nanded, located around 570 km from Mumbai, when his family members were out for some work on 29 July, an investigating officer in the case said. A suicide note was found near the body in which Kalyane purportedly mentioned that he was ending his life over the Maratha community’s demand for reservation, he said. [caption id=“attachment_4820281” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Maratha leaders protest for reservations for the community under the OBC category. PTI[/caption] The police were verifying the authenticity of the suicide note, the official said. The body was handed over to the family and the last rites were performed the same day, he added. With this incident, five people have so far died during the agitation by Marathas for job quota over the last one week. A 35-year-old man had allegedly committed suicide by jumping in front of a moving train in Aurangabad on 29 July over the Maratha quota demand, police said. Prior to this, two men had committed suicide over demand for the quota last week, while another died during violence by the agitators. The politically influential Maratha community, constituting around 30 percent of the state’s population, has been agitating to press its demand for reservation in jobs and education. The community had earlier taken out silent marches across the state to highlight their demands, prominently for reservation. However, their latest round of agitation has taken a violent turn. Protesters had resorted to violence and arson at separate places in Maharashtra on Monday. Four police officials were injured in stone pelting, while nearly 70 vehicles, including state and civic-run buses and those of police, were damaged or torched during the violence in Chakan near Pune, a police officer had said. Amid the continuing agitation, the Opposition Congress and the NCP yesterday approached Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao, urging him to direct the Devendra Fadnavis government to announce a decision on the reservation issue immediately. Maratha outfits said a mega rally will be held in Mumbai on August 9 in support of their quota demand.