A Banjara activist has launched a unique protest to demand the community’s inclusion in the Scheduled Tribe category by going on an indefinite fast, sitting on a charpoy (traditional light bedstead) tied to a tree in Maharashtra’s Jalna city.
Vijay Chavan, who began his agitation in the Ambad Chowfully area on Saturday, said he had sought permission to stage his protest at the district collectorate premises but was denied permission.
Banjaras, classified as VJNTs (Vimukta Jati and Nomadic Tribes) with a 3 per cent quota, are demanding the implementation of the Hyderabad Gazette, which grants them the Scheduled Tribe status.
Speaking to reporters, Chavan said, “We were classified as a Scheduled Tribe and enjoyed reservation benefits in the erstwhile Hyderabad State. We want those same rights restored. The Hyderabad Gazette refers to us as tribes, but due to misinterpretation and lack of representation after the Mandal period, the Banjara community was wrongly placed in the VJNT category in Maharashtra.” In September, the Banjara community had organised massive morchas across various districts of Marathwada, pressing for their long-pending demand.
The Maharashtra government’s recent decision to implement the Hyderabad Gazette for the Maratha community, following the agitation by activist Manoj Jarange at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan, has intensified similar demands from other communities.
The Gazette is being used to facilitate Kunbi caste certificates for Marathas, paving the way for their inclusion in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.
Historically, the Marathwada region was under the Nizam of Hyderabad, whose administration documented castes and occupations in the Gazette.
In 1918, Marathas were granted reservations in education and jobs, a precedent that is now being used to support their OBC claim.
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At that time, the Nizam ruled 17 districts, five of which, namely Aurangabad, Beed, Nanded, Parbhani, and Osmanabad, later became part of Maharashtra.
