Two more Maratha Kranti Muk Morcha (silent protest rallies) were organised in Yavatmal and Washim districts of Vidarbha region on Sunday as part of the community’s ongoing State-wide agitation triggered by the brutal gang-rape and murder of a minor Maratha girl in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra in July.
Over one lakh people participated in the rally in Yavatmal, a district infamous for farmers’ suicides, and around 80,000 people were part of the silent protest in Washim district. Farmers formed a big chunk at both rallies.
Both rallies were highly organised like the previous ones in the State and no untoward incident was reported despite the heavy rain.
Not a single slogan was raised nor political speech allowed at the protest venues.
Senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra Congress president Manikrao Thakarey participated in the Yavatmal protest and Washim MP and Shivsena leader Bhawana Gawali was present at the Washim rally.
Both rallies were led by young girls, who submitted their memorandum of demands to the district officials.
The demands included reservation for the Maratha community, the scrapping of the SC-ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, strict punishment to the culprits of Kopardi case and the right price for the agriculture produce of farmers from the community.
