Why Maratha Quota Politics Is Putting BJP in a Fresh OBC Challenge in Maharashtra

Maharashtra’s long-running debate over reservation has entered another politically sensitive phase, with renewed demands for wider access to Kunbi certificates bringing Maratha and Other Backward Classes (OBC) groups into sharper conflict.

Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil has renewed his demand to expand the ambit of Kunbi certificates beyond the Hyderabad Gazette. The demand has put the BJP government in Maharashtra and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in a difficult position, as opposition grows among a section of the OBC community.

The issue is particularly significant for the BJP, which has built a substantial political base among OBC communities in the state. The party’s earlier experience of benefiting from OBC consolidation during Maratha agitations may not necessarily be repeated this time.

Why Are OBC Groups Worried?

Kunbis are part of the OBC category in Maharashtra. A Maratha who obtains a valid Kunbi certificate can therefore claim reservation under the existing 27% OBC quota.

Maratha organisations have argued that historical records, including those from the erstwhile Hyderabad State, establish Kunbi ancestry among sections of the community. OBC organisations fear that a wider interpretation of these records could substantially increase the number of Marathas eligible for reservation under the OBC quota.

OBC leaders have also raised concerns over the absence of a separate OBC column in the caste census and what they describe as the government’s handling of Kunbi certificates.

Why Is The Issue Politically Important For BJP?

The BJP’s social-engineering strategy in Maharashtra has relied heavily on building support among OBC communities. Party ideologue Vasantrao Bhagwat’s MADHAV formulation - Mali, Dhangar and Vanjari -was an early effort to consolidate key OBC groups behind the party.

The strategy was later expanded to include smaller and micro-OBC communities as well as Marathas. In the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, the BJP won 132 of the state’s 288 seats.

The current reservation dispute therefore places the BJP in a position where it has to address concerns from two electorally important communities. A BJP insider told that OBCs increasingly felt the government was “pampering Marathas beyond reason” because of their street agitation, as per The Indian Express.

What Has The Government Said?

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has sought to reassure both communities, saying the government would not do injustice to anyone and that the OBC quota would not be compromised.

At the same time, Fadnavis has said there would be no injustice to the Maratha community and that whatever is legally and constitutionally valid would be done.

These assurances have not fully addressed OBC concerns. Senior OBC leader Prakash Shendge said members of the community were increasingly feeling “betrayed” and were distancing themselves from the BJP.

OBC groups have also sought a caste census with a separate column for OBCs and assurances that the existing quota would remain intact.

Maratha Quota History

The present debate is also linked to the legal history of Maratha reservation. The Maharashtra government’s 2018 law providing 12% reservation to Marathas in education and 13% in government jobs was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2021.

The Court held that the reservation breached the 50 per cent ceiling and that exceptional circumstances required to cross the limit had not been established.

In 2025, the Mahayuti government issued a Government Resolution allowing Marathas from the Marathwada region, which was part of the erstwhile Hyderabad State, to access OBC reservation within the existing framework after proving their Kunbi lineage through the Hyderabad Gazette.

The Larger Dispute

OBC leaders have questioned how much reservation one community can effectively access through different routes. They have pointed to the 10 per cent reservation for Marathas under the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, the 10% EWS quota and the possibility of eligible Marathas accessing OBC reservation through Kunbi certificates.

The government maintains that an individual cannot claim reservation simultaneously under multiple categories and can avail benefits only under the category for which they are legally eligible.

The debate, however, continues to revolve around the demand for wider Kunbi certification and its potential implications for the existing OBC quota.

A Maratha Kranti Morcha coordinator told The Indian Express that economic distress and unemployment were driving support for Jarange-Patil, with many poor and unemployed Marathas seeing reservation as a possible solution to their economic difficulties.