Maharashtra govt should bring law and order under control: Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar

Nov 01, 2023

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], November 1 : Maharashtra Leader of the Opposition and Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar on Wednesday attacked Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde over the Maratha reservation agitation, saying 'the law and order in the state is unstable and the government should bring it under control at the earliest.'
The protest for quota for the Maratha community turned violent on Monday after Maratha quota supporters vandalised the homes and offices of several politicians.
The Congress leader further urged the Maharashtra government to take the initiative to end the agitation over the Maratha reservation as soon as possible.
"The government did not comment on it (the demand for a special session of the Assembly). It neither discussed nor proposed that. The government should take the initiative towards getting this agitation (on the Maratha reservation) called off as soon as possible. We told the government to take the initiative," Wadettiwar said.
"The law and order in the state is unstable and the government should bring this under control at the earliest and we stand with the government over this," Wadettiwar added.
Leaders from the opposition parties in Maharashtra are demanding a one-day special assembly session to find a solution to the Maratha quota issue.
The Maratha community has been protesting for their inclusion on the state's OBC list for more than 2 months.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that everyone agreed on providing Maratha reservations in the all-party meeting held in Mumbai on Wednesday.
During an interaction with the reporters after the all-party meeting, CM Shinde said, "In the all-party meeting, everyone agreed that the Maratha community should get a reservation. It was decided the reservation should be within the framework of the law and without doing injustice to other communities."
The Chief Minister also requested that people maintain peace and cooperate with the government in its efforts.
"I request Manoj Jarange Patil to have faith in the efforts of the government. This protest has started taking a new direction. The incidents of violence that have taken place and are taking place in the state are unjustified and are bringing disrepute to the movement. We strongly reject these incidents. Common people should not feel insecure. I request all to not take the law into their own hands and maintain peace and cooperate with the state government," CM Shinde said.
State Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar, former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Ministers Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Chandrakantdada Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Valse Patil, Girish Mahajan, and Dadaji Bhuse are among those who attended the meeting at Sahyadri Guest House.
Apart from them, Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council Ambadas Danve, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar and several leaders from their respective parties attended the all-party meeting.