The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) has faced substantial disruptions due to protests over the Maratha community’s reservation, impacting 46 of its 259 bus terminals. These ongoing protests, occurring in various districts, including Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Parbhani, Hingoli, Jalna, Nanded, and Dharashiv, have caused severe financial losses, estimated at 13.25 crore rupees.
The demonstrations have led to bus damages worth 5.25 crore rupees and an additional 8 crore rupees in lost ticket sales. The issue of the Maratha reservation has been contentious in Maharashtra, with the state granting a 16% quota in 2018.
The Maratha Sangh and Maratha Seva Sangh launched the first significant agitation for reservation in public employment and educational institutions in 1997, which is when the Maratha reservation tale began. The claim that the Marathas, historically regarded as an agrarian society known as Kunbis, were not a member of the higher caste was at the center of the controversy.
A bill classifying Marathas as a socially and educationally disadvantaged community and granting them a 16% quota in education and government jobs was finally enacted by the Maharashtra legislature after a protracted struggle. The State Backward Classes Commission’s recommendations were followed, although the High Court later affirmed the reservation’s constitutional legitimacy while recommending a reduction to 12 to 13% of the population.
The Supreme Court’s ruling that the Maratha reservation was unconstitutional and overturned the statute in May 2021 added another level of intricacy to the ongoing discussion around reservations in India.