Bestowing reservations may not always be a solution for politicians. The decision of the Maharashtra chief minister, Eknath Shinde, to give Marathas with Kunbi certificates the benefits of the other backward classes quota until reservations for them have been made has not been universally welcomed. Reservations for the Marathas had been denied by the Supreme Court in 2021 because the court reportedly found inadequate reason for Maharashtra to exceed the 50% cap on quotas. But the demand of the Maratha leader, Manoj Jarange Patil, who ended his indefinite fast with Mr Shinde’s announcement, was that the OBC reservations given to those holding Kunbi certificates in Vidarbha and other parts of the state should also be given to Marathas who farmed land, particularly in Marathwada. Kunbis, a generic term including various castes of traditional farmers in western India, are OBCs in Maharashtra. Mr Shinde’s promise would make Kunbi certificates easier for the applicant and his relatives with adequate ‘evidence’. This has upset the OBCs in the state, who fear that Marathas will eat into their 27% quota in education and jobs once reservations for them have been confirmed.

They are not alone. Even within Maharashtra’s Mahayuti government, the minister and OBC leader, Chhagan Bhujbal, objecting to the Marathas’ ‘backdoor entry’ into the OBC quota, has called for OBC protests. Meanwhile, the Union minister, Narayan Rane, has referred to the historical background of the Marathas, and has said that reservations shall devalue their status. Mr Rane appears to be alluding to the Marathas’ claim of Rajput connections. Being branded farmers would undermine this legacy. This might be a way of trying to stem what he calls ‘unrest in the state’ before the elections, although Mr Shinde’s promise must have been made with the same elections in mind. The chief minister’s promise of reservations is rather blatantly for political benefit, since the Marathas, around 35% of the population of the state, are socially forward, not backward. It is clearly a risky move. It would be ideal for the main ruling parties, the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party, to be able to please both the OBCs and the Marathas, the latter with the promise of OBC benefits for the time being. They will now have to find a strategy to ameliorate the divisive aspect of Mr Shinde’s decision.