A day after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis called for a dialogue with the organisers of Maratha rallies, the decision on whether to indulge in talks or not will be taken on September 30.
“We are of the firm opinion, as decided earlier, to not get involved in a discussion with the government. Our position is clear. They know our demands and we need an answer,” said a senior functionary from the core committee of the rallies.
He, however, said all participant Maratha organisations will be holding a meeting on September 30. “We will consider opinions of representatives of all the organisations and take a call.” Mr. Fadnavis in his Sunday’s speech had clarified that the government supports the Maratha reservation.
Meanwhile, on Monday, the Shiv Sena’s mouthpiece, Saamna , found itself in the middle of a controversy after it published a cartoon making fun of the Maratha silent marches. Its Sunday supplement had published the cartoon, which started making rounds on social media.
Maratha leaders termed it as demeaning towards the women from the community. Copies of the publication were burned in different parts of the State. The Sena’s strongholds, such as Marathwada and Nasik, too witnessed protests. The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) condemned the paper’s decision to publish such a cartoon.
“We condemn the Sena’s childish attempt to ridicule the protesters in the Maratha rallies. Making fun of women participating in the rallies by such cheap jokes shows that this party has neither understood Chhatrapati Shivaji nor Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar. It also shows that the party itself has become nothing but a cartoon,” said Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant, demanding an apology from the party.
Despite repeated attempts, Saamna editor Sanjay Raut was not available for comment.
