Maharashtra govt responds to OBC protests, invites representatives for talks in Mumbai

Nagpur: Taking note of the agitations by OBC organisations, the state government has finally invited representatives of these organisations for talks in Mumbai on September 29. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar will be present at the meeting to be held at Sahyadri Guest House at 2 pm.

The letter issued about the meeting includes the names of former BJP MLAs from Nagpur city. However, Congress-NCP leaders like former minister Sunil Kedar, former home minister Anil Deshmukh, and Vikas Thakre have not been invited.

On Thursday, Leader of the Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar spoke with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde over the phone, requesting him to convene a meeting of OBC organisations. During their discussion, the chief minister agreed to organize a meeting on September 29 following the Ganpati visarjan. Consequently, the office of the Housing and Other Backward Bahujan Welfare Minister issued a letter on Friday morning.

Following a suggestion from Atul Save, former minister Parinay Phuke visited the protest site with the letter. He was accompanied by the BJP district president, Sudhakar Kohale.