Manoj Jarange Patil has expressed strong sentiments regarding the issue of reservations for the Kunbi community, claiming that 'I am Ph.D. on this topic'. He challenged anyone to prove that Kunbis are not a sub-caste of the Marathas, stating, "If you think Marathas cannot receive reservations under the OBC category, then kick them out and show us how Kunbis are not a sub-caste of Marathas."
Jarange Patil made these comments during a discussion with a government delegation in Antarwali Sarati, Jalna. He clearly conveyed his stance to the delegation, saying, "Kunbis are included in the OBC category, so why are Marathas excluded? Provide Kunbi certificates to any Maratha who requests it based on the existing Kunbi records. Marathas and Kunbis are the same; Kunbis are a sub-caste of Marathas."
Rajendra Raut, an MLA from Barshi, pointed out that each party claims OBC reservations are unfeasible. In response, Jarange Patil said, "If they don’t provide the reservations, kick them out. We are demanding this because they haven’t given it. If they don’t provide it, we will take action."
Raut also mentioned that the government faces difficulties including pure Marathas under the OBC category. Jarange Patil retorted, "The people within the government are asking to cancel the records. Doesn’t this show how poorly they regard Marathas? The demand to cancel 57 lakh records reflects their disdain for the Maratha community. Reservations have been given based on professions, and agriculture is the primary occupation of the Maratha community."
He expressed dissatisfaction with the government's handling of the issue, saying, "The government doesn’t care about us and the Kunbi community. We have inter-marriages with Kunbis; note that. Reservations should be provided according to our definition. The government accepted our definition but excluded some words."
Jarange Patil also demanded the withdrawal of all cases related to the issue. "The government assured us that all cases will be withdrawn. Our names were included in the cases due to caste prejudice. Fulfill our demands urgently and avoid pushing us into politics. We don’t want to be dragged into politics."
Rana Jagjit Singh questioned whether these objections had been formally submitted to the government. Jarange Patil confirmed, "Yes, we have written to the government. However, Sumit Bhange is deliberately creating hurdles in the GR (Government Resolution). The government's need for a home verification while issuing caste certificates is reasonable, but we don’t accept the government's definition of the terms used. If the words we specified are included in the definition, it would be acceptable. We have a Ph.D. in the matter of reservations and government definitions. While we don’t want to engage in politics, we expect our demands to be met," he concluded.