India, Aug. 30 -- Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil has added a fresh condition to his list of demands while launching his 11th indefinite hunger strike at Antarwali Sarati in Jalna. Beyond his existing ten demands regarding Maratha reservation, Jarange-Patil is now clamouring for the total scrapping of caste validity scrutiny committees. This new demand has immediately drawn staunch opposition from Other Backward Classes (OBC) leaders and legal experts across Maharashtra.

Jarange-Patil alleges that these committees act as corrupt hurdles in obtaining OBC certificates, claiming that they demand bribes while ignoring legitimate documentation. Pointing out that issuing authorities like tehsildars and sub-divisional officers ...