Tribal MLAs, including NCP leader Ajit Pawar faction MLA and deputy speaker Narhari Jhirwal, allegedly attempted suicide in Mantralaya, the administrative headquarters of the Maharashtra government in Mumbai, on Friday, October 4. The incident was captured on camera and is now going viral on social media.
According to reports, they were protesting against the Dhangar community's getting reservations under the ST category. Some tribal MLAs, along with Narhari Zirwal, met Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at the Sahyadri guest house on Wednesday, demanding that no other caste be included in the Adivasi reservation.
However, they were kept waiting for 7 hours to meet the CM. The tribal MLAs were unhappy with this, as after waiting for a long time, they could not meet the CM, which caused some MLs to jump on the net in Mantralaya. The incident occurred coinciding with the ongoing Maharashtra Cabinet meeting.
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Ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections, the state government led by Eknath Shinde is preparing to grant the Dhangar community Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. Zirwal, NCP Tribal MLA from Dindori Assembly, expressed his dissatisfaction with the government’s approach to the issue.
MLA Rajesh Patil told LokmatTimes.com, "We told government that they should not give reservation to Dhangars in Adivasi. Dhangar and Dhangad are two different categories. We are opposing this. Hence we protested. We went to meet the CM during the Cabinet meeting. He met us for one minute in the lobby but we did not get desirable solution. No minister is ready to discuss this issue."
Leaders on the net in Mantrayala are Narhari Sitaram Zirwal, MLA Rajesh Patil, Prakash Nikam and Dr Kiran Lahamate
In a video shared by ABP News, four MLAs were seen crawling on the safety net and trying to climb it into the building again. Police officials were also visible near the net, trying to rescue them. The safety net in the Mumbai Mantralaya building is installed to shield the open space below. The safety net placed in the main Mantralay building serves as a precautionary measure to deter suicide attempts.