By: Pushkraj VernekarMUMBAI: Celebrations erupted among Maratha quota supporters as activist Manoj Jarange declared the long battle with the state govt officially over Tuesday. Shouts of “Jinkle re jinkle, Maratha jinkle (They won, they won, the Marathas won!)” could be heard across Fort precinct. They celebrated with gulal and firecrackers. Azad Maidan precinct and D N Road, Fort, lay coloured with gulal as the Maratha groups clicked selfies with police officials, politicians and mediapersons.Some agitators began to leave the site. Ganesh Kokate, a departing protester, said, “Marathwada has seen so many suicides of farmers who saw no hope in the future. Now our children will get educated and get proper jobs. Now we have something to live for.”Brothers Vishnu and Avinash Kale, young farmers from Hingoli, said, “In our society, there is no value in farming. Whenever a young man goes to see a prospective bride, her parents only ask one thing — what job does he do? They don’t care about how much land or money you have. Back home, there are many men in their 30s and even 40s who are still unmarried, because why would any parent want to subject their daughter to a life of penury and hard physical labour?”Avinash added, “On my farm, during good monsoons, we can grow four to five quintals of soybean. I can earn Rs 4,000 per quintal, but I have to spend upwards of Rs 3,000 per acre on costs like electricity, water and fertiliser. There’s nothing left. And if by chance it rains too much or too little and the crop fails — we are finished.”Most protesters, along with their fellow villagers, took the train from CSMT to Vashi, or headed to parking spots.As the main protest site of Azad Maidan fell quiet, one of the organisers of the event, Kisarem Raut of the Akhil Bharatiya Maratha Maha Sanghatna (Jalna), said, “In India aren’t we all supposed to be equal? Then why does a Maratha child who scores good marks get passed over by someone who has got less marks?”The mood was jubilant as Marathas rejoiced. One said, “We will now return to our villages. This is Diwali for us. Manoj Jarange Dada is our hero.”Jubilation unfolded in Navi Mumbai too where thousands of visiting Marathas have been staying since Aug 29.
