Maratha quota stir: Internet blocked in Navi Mumbai after clashes, arson

Police on Wednesday evening lobbed teargas shells and used baton-charge in the Kopar Khairane area after a group of protesters stoned vehicles and clashed with local people

Internet services in the neighbouring Navi Mumbai township have been suspended since early Thursday, a police official said.

The decision was taken in the wake of the situation in areas like Kopar Khairne, which witnessed violence during the Maratha quota agitation on Wednesday, he said.

The situation in Kopar Khairne was still tense, the official said.

Last evening, the police had lobbed teargas shells and used baton-charge in Kopar Khairane area after a group of protesters stoned vehicles, clashed with local people and indulged in arson.

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Maratha quota stir: Mumbai bandh today; Navi Mumbai, Panvel to also be shut

As the Maratha quota stir intensified, agitators clashed with the police and torched vehicles at several places on Tuesday

Mumbaikars on Wednesday braced for a Mumbai bandh after large-scale violence marred a state-wide protest on Tuesday by Maratha outfits demanding reservations for the community in Maharashtra, where a constable died and nine other policemen were injured amid a suicide attempt by three agitators.

As the stir for reservations in jobs and education intensified, the Maratha Kranti Morcha, which is spearheading the agitation, is taking its battle to Mumbai where it has called for the shutdown. Another outfit, the Sakal Maratha Samaj, called for a bandh on Wednesday in Navi Mumbai and Panvel as well.

Also Read : Maratha quota stir makes Mumbai tense; buses attacked, slogans against CM

On Tuesday, stone-pelting and arson were reported from several parts of the state, which remained on edge. Agitators clashed with the police and torched vehicles at several places, while internet services were suspended in rural areas of Aurangabad district to prevent any untoward incident. In Jalna, the police fired in the air to scatter protesters.

The impact of Tuesday's bandh was more visible in Aurangabad and adjoining districts in the central region of the state, a day after the death of a protester. Read More

 

Maratha morcha: Lakhs expected to attend protest march in Mumbai today

To seek reservations in jobs and education for the Maratha community

Latest Current Affairs : Lakhs of people from across Maharashtra are expected to attend a protest march in Mumbai on Wednesday, seeking reservations in jobs and education for the Maratha community.

This will be the 58th — and the largest-protest march of the Maratha community, exactly a year after the first march was held in Aurangabad, the organisers told reporters in Mumbai.

So far, 57 protests, in the form of 'Mook Morcha' (silent rallies), have been held in various parts of the state following the brutal rape and murder of a 14-year-old Maratha girl in Kopardi in Ahmednagar district in July 2016.

On Wednesday, the Maratha Kranti Morcha will begin at 11 am from the BMC's Jijamata Udyan and culminate at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, the organisers said.

Social media platforms like Facebook, Whatsapp and Twitter have been used to spread the morcha message to community members, they said.

The JJ flyover will be closed for traffic on Wednesday in view of the morcha, police said.

Schools in south Mumbai will remain closed tomorrow as a precautionary measure, an official said.

The silent protest is a peaceful way to pres the demand for reservation in jobs and educational institutions and punishment for culprits in the Kopardi case, the organisers said.

Their other demands include Amendment in SC, ST (Prevention of Atrocities Act) to stop its misuse, loan waiver to curb farmer suicides, and remunerative prices for agricultural produce.

The morcha has been organised by the Sakal Maratha Samaj, an umbrella organisation of several Maratha groups.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to use the Bombay Gymkhana ground adjacent to the Azad Maidan, to handle the large number of people expected to participate in tomorrow's morcha, an official said.

BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta and Commissioner of Police Datta Padsalgikar had met last week to discuss preparations and necessary arrangements from a security point of view, he said.