Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Deputy Ajit Pawar Meet PM Modi In Delhi

In the meeting, Mr Thackeray raised the subject of Maratha quota, struck down by the Supreme Court recently.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, along with his Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and PWD Minister Ashok Chavan, today met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital. In the meeting, Mr Thackeray raised the subject of Maratha quota, struck down by the Supreme Court recently.

Uddhav Thackeray had also asked for 10 minutes of face-time with PM Modi, as per sources. However, details are not known yet.

“I raised the issue of Maratha reservation,” said the Chief Minister. Cyclone Tauktae relief for Maharashtra was also discussed.

Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Uddhav Thackeray, Deputy Chief Minister Shri @AjitPawarSpeaks and Cabinet Minister Shri @AshokChavanINC called on PM @narendramodi. @OfficeofUT @CMOMaharashtra pic.twitter.com/aiJRzKRiyl

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) June 8, 2021

The Maharashtra Chief Minister last month had written to PM Modi and requested him to take steps to declare the Maratha community in the state as a Socially and Educationally Backward caste so they could claim reservation in education (12 per cent) and jobs (13 per cent).

Calling it “unconstitutional”, the Supreme Court had struck down the quota. The 2018 law for Maratha quota had pushed reservation over the current 50 per cent cap, said a five-judge bench.

Uddhav Thackeray’s visit to the national capital comes shortly after his party’s mouthpiece Saamana, in an editorial, said the battle to “destabilise politics of Maharashtra” would be fought in Delhi.

“The collision will prove to be decisive. To destabilise politics of Maharashtra, opposition will use the issue of the Maratha reservation as a weapon, then they will have to stop it in time,” it said last month.