Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil addresses supporters after the Maharashtra government accepted his demands, in Navi Mumbai.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Marathwada meaning “the house of Marathi-speaking people”, was a vast stretch of land occupied by the Marathi-speaking population of the former Hyderabad state during the period of Nizam's rule. Marathwada was subsequently integrated in the erstwhile Bombay State.
In terms of size — 64,590 sq km — the Marathwada region of Maharashtra is bigger than several Indian states and some European countries.
As Maharashtra goes for polls, the biggest issue here is the Maratha reservation campaign led by Manoj Jarange-Patil and the OBC resistance headed by Laxman Hake.
“In Marathwada, the J-Factor would work,” said Suresh Patil, a villager from Ambad tehsil, in an apparent reference to Jarange-Patil, who has become a sort of hero for the Maratha youth.
The Jalna-based Jarange-Patil was contemplating fielding candidates in Marathwada, however, he has backed out - a move which would clearly benefit the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi like the Lok Sabha polls. This region is a major challenge for the BJP-led Maha Yuti.
“In Lok Sabha, Jarange-Patil had not contested the elections but his people are contesting the polls, and the impact was felt. In Vidhan Sabha, he strategically backed out. This would again have an impact on Maha Yuti,” said journalist and political analyst Nisar Ahmed Khan, who hails from Beed.
There is a stark difference in the results of 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha polls - and the splits in Shiv Sena and NCP and the caste issue is responsible.
In 2019, the undivided Shiv Sena won four seats and the BJP three while Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM won one seat.
In 2024, however, BJP could not win a single seat but Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena won one seat. On the other hand, opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi won seven seats - (Congress - 3 seats, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) - three seats and Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) one seat.)
While Latur is an SC reserved seat, the rest of the seven seats were won by Marathas.
“Farmers issues are big in Marathwada, whether it is cotton or soybean,” said independent political analyst Vivek Bhavsar.
“If you look at Lok Sabha polls, even Pankaja Munde faced defeat from the home turf of Beed, a constituency her sister Pritam Munde had been winning after Gopinath Munde’s death.
This time from Parli, her cousin Dhananjay Munde of NCP is contesting. This is going to be one of the most keenly-watched contests. In 2019, Dhananjay had defeated Pankaja, however, now they have patched up,” said a senior BJP leader.
On the other hand, Congress party’s MLA and former Chief Minister’s son Amit Deshmukh is facing Dr Archana Patil-Chakurkar, the daughter-in-law of former Lok Sabha Speaker Shivraj Patil-Chakurkar in Latur City.
Former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan’s daughter Shreejaya Chavan is contesting the Bhokar seat for BJP - which had earlier been represented by her father, mother Ameeta Chavan and late grandfather Shankarrao Chavan.
Aurangabad Shiv Sena MP Sandipan Bhumre’s son Vilas Bhumre is contesting the Paithan seat.
“Water is a big issue in the entire Marathwada ... .we have to depend on tanker water supply. Water from civic body sources comes once a week to 10 days,” said MK Kulkarni, a resident of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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