Homes of 2 MLAs, former minister set on fire amid protest for Maratha quota demand

Digital Desk: Protesters vandalised politicians' homes and public spaces in Beed on Monday, escalating the protests for the Maratha reservation. As the opposition party Shiv Sena (UBT) demanded calling a special session of Parliament to examine demands for the Maratha reservation, two MLAs of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and a former minister had their residences set on fire.

Protesters set on fire district MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar's house in Beed. Kshirsagar is a member of the NCP party led by Sharad Pawar. There were also fires started in parked cars at his residence.

There haven't been any reported injuries, according to the police.

Another NCP MLA in the Beed district, Prakash Solanke, was also vandalised and set on fire by demonstrators earlier in the day. Solanke is a member of the NCP group led by Ajit Pawar.

In Beed, the office of former minister Jaydattaji Kshirsagar was also set on fire. He is a member of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.

Earlier today, a faction led by Sharad Pawar set fire to an NCP office.

In Vadgaon Nimbalkar village, the demonstrators also vandalised posters of Ajit Pawar, the deputy chief minister, as a way of expressing their rage.

Members of the Maratha community have been holding protests around Maharashtra in order to demand reservations for them in government positions and in educational programs for Other Backward Classes (OBC) students.

Following Manoj Jarange Patil, a Maratha reservation activist, initiated an indefinite fast in the Jalna area on October 25, the agitation grew more intense. The activist went on a hunger strike from August 29 to September 14, but he ended it when the state government promised to investigate his demand for quotas.

Laxman Madhavrao Pawar, BJP MLA, and Rajeshwar Chavan, NCP District President, resigned today in Beed amid violence.