Ahead of polls, leaders trying to woo ‘game changer’ Jarange

mumbai: Alarmed by the consolidation of Maratha votes, a factor believed to have dented established political parties in Marathwada region of Maharashtra in Lok Sabha polls, leaders of all hues are trying to mend fences with quota activist Manoj Jarange.

Jarange, who wields considerable influence on the Maratha community, may either field candidates in next month’s Maharashtra Assembly elections or choose to damage the prospects of those leaders who he thinks are anti-reservation.

On Wednesday, a day after the poll schedule was announced by the Election Commission, Jarange said that interviews of poll aspirants would be conducted on Thursday.

Several leaders and poll aspirants across party lines have met Jarange in the recent past, with many even lending support to his agitation.

Political analysts believe that the reason is the altered political landscape in Maharashtra following splits in two major parties - Shiv Sena and NCP, which diminished the chance to get tickets.

“With the BJP-led NDA and Congress-led MVA comprising three prominent parties each, the likelihood of contenders securing tickets from a specific constituency decreases if it is already represented by another alliance member. This situation increases the risk of rebellion,” the analyst said.

Feeling threatened, poll aspirants are trying to get the sympathy of voters by meeting influential leaders like Jarange in the Marathwada region, political observer Abhay

Deshpande said.

“In such a scenario, consolidating all the small factors becomes essential. The meetings of MLAs and aspiring candidates with Jarange could be viewed as one of these attempts,” Deshpande added.

Jarange said interviews of poll aspirants will be conducted from Thursday but the final call on whether to field candidates from the Maratha community will be taken on October 20.

“We will organise a meeting of the Maratha community at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna on October 20 to determine whether the community should field candidates or work towards ensuring the defeat of those leaders who oppose the reservation,” he said.