On 29 August 2025, Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange began an indefinite hunger strike at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, demanding that Marathas be recognised as Kunbis and given reservation under the OBC category. Tens of thousands of supporters filled the streets around Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus. On 2 September, after the Bombay High Court ordered the streets cleared, the Maharashtra government issued a resolution (GR) on Kunbi certificates based on the Hyderabad Gazette and Jarange ended his fast. OBC groups protested the GR and challenged it in court, where it has not been stayed.
Background: the Kunbi demand
Jarange, from Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, has led fasts for a Maratha quota since 2023. His central demand in 2025 was that all Marathas be recognised as Kunbis, an agrarian caste listed among Other Backward Classes (OBC), making them eligible for reservation in government jobs and education PTI via DT Next The Wire.
The Hyderabad Gazette is a 1918 record of the Nizam's Hyderabad state, which then included five Marathwada districts: Aurangabad, Beed, Nanded, Parbhani and Osmanabad. It recorded caste and occupation and classified Marathas in the region as Kunbis ThePrint National Herald.
Separately, the Maharashtra SEBC Act, 2024 already gives Marathas a 10% quota outside the OBC list. That law is under challenge in the Bombay High Court on the ground that it breaches the 50% ceiling Bar and Bench.
How it reached Mumbai
On 26 August 2025, PTI reported that the Bombay High Court had said Jarange could not hold a protest without prior permission. The same day, an officer from the Chief Minister's office met him at Antarwali Sarati, on the eve of the Ganesh festival, to dissuade him. He refused and said he would leave for Mumbai on 27 August PTI via The Week.
Mumbai Police then allowed a one-day protest at Azad Maidan on 29 August, from 9 am to 6 pm, with no more than 5,000 protesters and five protesters' vehicles. Under a High Court order, only about 7,000 square metres of the ground are reserved for agitations PTI via The Week. Permission was later extended a day at a time Deccan Herald.
Timeline
Fast begins
Jarange began his indefinite fast at Azad Maidan and said he would not leave Mumbai until the demand was met PTI via The Week. Supporter Satish Deshmukh, 40, of Beed, died of a heart attack near Junnar in Pune district on the way Deccan Herald.
South Mumbai jammed
Protesters blocked the square outside CSMT and the BMC headquarters, and traffic around the station was nearly crippled Deccan Herald. Thousands camped around the ground, cooking and bathing in the open Tribune. Talks with a government delegation ended without a deal Tribune.
Second death
Vijaykumar Ghogre, 32, of Latur district, who had come for the agitation, complained of chest pain near Pydhonie and was declared dead at Sir JJ Hospital Deccan Herald PTI via The Week.
Water refused; High Court steps in
Jarange said he would stop drinking water PTI via The Week. A special bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Gautam Ankhad, hearing a PIL by the Amy Foundation, said the stir was not peaceful, had violated its permission conditions, and that streets must be cleared Scroll Deccan Herald.
3 pm deadline
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Aarti Sathe told Jarange and supporters to vacate Azad Maidan by 3 pm or face action, including costs and contempt Deccan Herald LiveLaw.
GR issued, fast ends
A delegation led by Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, head of the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha reservation, met Jarange and conveyed acceptance of most demands. The GR was issued and Jarange ended his fast PTI via The Week Tribune.
I will die, but won't back down this time.
Manoj Jarange, Azad Maidan, 29 August 2025 (PTI via DT Next)
Both accounts
Protesters' account
Jarange said Marathas had waited years and that government records already showed lakhs of Marathas as Kunbis. He cited 58 lakh such records, a figure he has repeated since Deccan Chronicle. He said he would not leave Azad Maidan even if the government fired on protesters ETV Bharat. Supporters complained of a lack of food and water near the site Siasat. After the GR he called it a "golden day for Maharashtra" IANS.
Police and government account
Government's position Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said any solution had to fit the law and court directions, and called the demand for a 10% quota within the OBC category irrational The Wire. In court, the Advocate General said over 25,000 protesters had entered the city, far beyond the limit Free Press Journal. A police official put the figure at over 60,000 people in 8,000 vehicles. Police said more than 1,500 personnel kept the protest largely peaceful PTI via The Week.
Documented No police firing, lathicharge or arrests at Azad Maidan were reported in the sources reviewed. The two deaths were from heart attacks, per the reports cited above.
What the 2 September GR says
The GR, issued by the Social Justice and Special Assistance Department, set up a process to give Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas with historical evidence of Kunbi heritage Hitavada. Village-level committees of the gram revenue officer, gram panchayat secretary and assistant agriculture officer review applications. Applicants without land records may file affidavits of residence before 13 October 1967 Drishti IAS.
Fadnavis said certificates go to individuals, not to the whole community, and the Hyderabad Gazette would serve as proof. Decisions on the Satara, Pune and Aundh gazettes were deferred for examination PTI via The Week. Deputy CM Eknath Shinde said the quotas of other communities remained intact Deccan Herald. Certificates began to be handed out around Marathwada Liberation Day, 17 September 2025 Free Press Journal.
OBC counter-protests
On 3 September, OBC leader and minister Chhagan Bhujbal skipped the cabinet meeting and said he would challenge the GR in court. Fadnavis told him it did not affect the OBC quota PTI via The Week. Activist Laxman Hake called the GR "completely illegal" and warned that OBCs would take to the streets PTI via The Week.
Claim · OBC groups They argue Kunbi certificates for Marathas will shrink the share of existing OBC castes within the 27% quota. Government's position The state says the GR only covers Marathas who can prove Kunbi origin and has no impact on OBC reservation Hitavada. On 10 October 2025 a "Sakal OBC Maha Morcha" marched from Yashwant Stadium in Nagpur demanding the GR be withdrawn Hitavada.
What the courts said
In its 1 and 2 September orders, the High Court said the city should not be brought to a standstill and directed action against violators SCC Online. It also remarked that the state could have vacated the site forcefully LiveLaw.
Five petitions against the GR were filed by the Kunbi Sena, Maharashtra Mali Samaj Mahasangh, Ahir Suvarnkar Samaj Sanstha, Sadanand Mandalik and Maharashtra Nabhik Mahamandal. On 22 September 2025 a bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Sandesh Patil recused without giving a reason PTI via The Week. On 7 October 2025 Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad refused an interim stay and asked the state to file an affidavit. Advocate General Birendra Saraf argued that the petitioners were not aggrieved, since the GR did not directly affect them ETV Bharat LiveLaw.
We are at this stage not elaborating upon the issues raised by the petitioners and would hence decline to grant any interim relief.
Bombay High Court, 7 October 2025 (ETV Bharat)
Where it stands now
By August 2026, Jarange said certificate issuance was delayed and inconsistent, and ministers promised to clear pending cases Telangana Today. He began a new fast at Antarwali Sarati on 29 August 2026 and set out for Mumbai. Mumbai Police refused permission for an Azad Maidan fast from 19 September, citing Ganeshotsav and past non-compliance IANS via Social News XYZ. The High Court declined to pass orders against the march Bar and Bench.
His health failed at Patoda in Beed district Telangana Today. On 17 September 2026 he ended the 20-day fast after talks with a Vikhe Patil-led delegation and gave the government three months. The Chief Minister said 12 of 13 demands had been accepted. Vikhe Patil said action on the Satara and Kolhapur gazettes could take three to four months after the Advocate General's written comments Hans India Telangana Today.
- Fast: Ended on day five, 2 September 2025, after the GR.
- Deaths: Two supporters, both of heart attacks.
- Arrests: None reported at Azad Maidan.
- Policy: GR on Kunbi certificates via the Hyderabad Gazette; other gazettes still pending.
- Courts: GR not stayed; the OBC petitions are pending. A new three-judge bench began rehearing the SEBC Act challenge on 9 October 2026 LiveLaw.
Questions people ask
Why did Manoj Jarange fast at Azad Maidan in 2025?
He wanted Marathas recognised as Kunbis so they could get reservation under the OBC category. He fasted from 29 August to 2 September 2025.
What is the Hyderabad Gazette?
A 1918 record of the Nizam's Hyderabad state, which covered five Marathwada districts. It lists Marathas there as Kunbis, and the 2 September 2025 GR uses it as proof for Kunbi certificates.
What did the Bombay High Court order?
On 1 September 2025 it said the protest had broken its permission conditions and ordered streets cleared. On 2 September it set a 3 pm deadline to vacate Azad Maidan.
Why do OBC groups oppose the GR?
They say Kunbi certificates for Marathas will cut into the existing 27% OBC quota. The state says only Marathas with proven Kunbi origin qualify and OBC reservation is unaffected.
Has the court stayed the Kunbi GR?
No. On 7 October 2025 the High Court refused an interim stay and sought the state's reply. No final ruling was found.
Did Jarange protest again in 2026?
Yes. He fasted from 29 August 2026, was denied permission for Azad Maidan, and ended the fast on 17 September at Patoda with a three-month deadline.
Sources
- PTI via DT Next: Jarange begins indefinite hunger strike in Mumbai, 29 Aug 2025
- The Wire: Jarange-Patil begins indefinite hunger strike; Fadnavis comments, Aug 2025
- ThePrint: What is the Hyderabad Gazette, Sept 2025
- National Herald: 1918 to 2025, how the Hyderabad Gazette shapes the debate, Sept 2025
- Bar and Bench: Maratha reservation case to be reheard for third time, 2026
- PTI via The Week: Jarange firm on quota agitation in Mumbai from Aug 29, 26 Aug 2025
- PTI via The Week: Jarange reaches Azad Maidan, 29 Aug 2025
- Deccan Herald: Police grant permission for one more day, Aug 2025
- PTI via The Week: Jarange begins hunger strike, says won't leave Mumbai, 29 Aug 2025
- Deccan Herald: Two lives lost in three days, Aug 2025
- Deccan Herald: Traffic chaos in south Mumbai on day 2, 30 Aug 2025
- Tribune: Protesters turn Mumbai's heritage zone into campsite, Aug 2025
- Tribune: Talks with govt fail to yield solution, 30 Aug 2025
- PTI via The Week: Hundreds in Latur mourn Maratha youth, 31 Aug 2025
- PTI via The Week: Jarange vows to give up water, 1 Sept 2025
- Scroll: Bombay HC orders protesters to vacate Mumbai roads, 1 Sept 2025
- Deccan Herald: HC says stir not peaceful, 1 Sept 2025
- Deccan Herald: HC asks supporters to vacate Azad Maidan by 3 pm, 2 Sept 2025
- LiveLaw: Bombay High Court on vacating Azad Maidan, 2 Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: Jarange ends fast after GR, 2 Sept 2025
- Tribune: "We have won," says Jarange, 2 Sept 2025
- Deccan Chronicle: Jarange announces fresh agitation
- ETV Bharat: Jarange warns to give up water on day 4, 1 Sept 2025
- Siasat: Protesters lack food, water, Aug 2025
- IANS: "Golden day for Maharashtra", 2 Sept 2025
- Free Press Journal: HC orders protesters to vacate streets, 1 Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: Police handling kept protest peaceful, 2 Sept 2025
- Hitavada: Jarange ends fast as govt accepts demands, 3 Sept 2025
- Drishti IAS: Kunbi status for Marathas in Marathwada, 4 Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: Fadnavis on the solution, 2 Sept 2025
- Deccan Herald: Shinde says other quotas intact, Sept 2025
- Free Press Journal: Distribution of Kunbi certificates begins, Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: Bhujbal skips cabinet meeting, 3 Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: OBCs will take to streets, says activist, 3 Sept 2025
- Hitavada: Govt starts Hyderabad gazette implementation, 11 Sept 2025
- Hitavada: OBCs demand rollback of September 2 GR, 11 Oct 2025
- SCC Online: "City should not be brought to a standstill", 3 Sept 2025
- PTI via The Week: HC bench recuses from Maratha quota pleas, 22 Sept 2025
- ETV Bharat: HC refuses interim stay on Kunbi GR, 7 Oct 2025
- LiveLaw: HC refuses stay, seeks state's response, Oct 2025
- Telangana Today: Jarange demands no compromise on 58 lakh Kunbi records, Aug 2026
- Social News XYZ: Permission for Azad Maidan protest denied, 13 Sept 2026
- Bar and Bench: HC declines to halt Jarange's march to Mumbai, Sept 2026
- Telangana Today: Jarange halts Mumbai march, Sept 2026
- Hans India: Jarange calls off 20-day fast, gives three months, Sept 2026
- Telangana Today: Jarange ends 20-day fast, Sept 2026
- LiveLaw: New 3-judge bench, fresh hearing from October 9, 2026