Aurangabad, May 5:
There was no responsible person for the Maratha reservation from the state government, said Vinod Patil, a petitioner in the Maratha reservation struggle, after the Supreme Court's verdict. Patil also demanded that the state government should announce a concrete program of Maratha reservation to provide relief to the distressed Maratha community due to cancellation of reservation.
He said the state government did not adopt a step-by-step strategy in the battle for reservation in the court. The same can be seen from today's results. There was also confusion within the government. The lawyers were seeking postponement of hearings in the Supreme Court while pointing out that the state government has not briefed them properly. I will not say that the government was unwilling to grant reservations, but the government had no idea. If the reservation is canceled, they should clarify what option the government has now.
It is also a question regarding the adminision of the students of the community. The government should consider it as a special matter. We will handle this case with restraint. Patil also said that after the Supreme Court verdict, allegations are being leveled against each other by the Maha Vikas Aghadi and the BJP. The government failed to espouse proper arguments which could have convinced the apex court in upholding the law. It failed to highlight the exceptional circumstances under which the reservation was granted to the Maratha community.
A minister made a statement that the report of the state backward class commission will be sent to the national commission for backward classes. But why should be the report be sent to natioanl commission when Maratha reservation is limited to Maharashtra, Patil quizzed. The president does have powers, but are they for the center. The BJP should clarify what it can do to give sustainable reservation to the Maratha community without making political allegations, he said.