A protest by members of the Dhangar community in Maharashtra's Jalna district took a violent turn on Tuesday evening. The unrest ensued after officials at the district collector's office reportedly refused to accept the community's memorandum demanding Scheduled Tribe reservation.
As part of a statewide protest, Dhangar community members visited collector offices across various districts to submit memorandums seeking reservation under the Scheduled Tribe quota.
The situation escalated when some protesters, agitated by the refusal to accept their memorandum, vandalized the district collector's office. The angry crowd also resorted to pelting stones, causing damage to the property and several vehicles within the premises. Following the incident, the police swiftly increased security measures in Jalna, particularly around government offices, deploying State Reserve Police Force teams to maintain order.
This incident marks the second violent incident related to reservation issues in Jalna within the past three months. In September, a protest demanding Maratha reservation in Ambad, Jalna, had also turned violent.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, when questioned about the recent events, claimed to be unaware of the situation. However, MLC and Dhangar community leader Gopichand Padalkar provided insight into the sequence of events. He stated that the Jalna collector had initially agreed to come down to the office to receive the memorandum. As planned, community members informed the collector's office after concluding their protest, expecting someone to receive the memorandum. However, no one came forward despite an hour-long wait, leading to the community's outrage and the subsequent violent incident.
Padalkar urged the Dhangar community to refrain from taking the law into their own hands and advised against engaging in any form of violence. Additionally, he appealed to the administration not to take punitive action against the protesters. Padalkar expressed his willingness to visit Jalna and engage with the district collector and superintendent of police if needed.
A protester provided further context, explaining that they had met with the collector on Monday and requested him to come down to receive the memorandum due to the expected large crowd. The collector had agreed, but the situation changed after the protest. Officials claimed that no one could come down due to protocol constraints, a response that outraged the protesters. The incident has sparked concerns about the escalating tension around reservation issues in the region, with protesters warning of potential repercussions if their demands are not taken seriously by the government.