Jarange Takes Over Mumbai

The debate on the quota aside, there are hard questions about the nature of this protest

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There have been disruptions and snarls of many kinds in the heart of south Mumbai over the weekend, as thousands of protestors, demanding reservation for the Maratha community led by activist Manoj Jarange-Patil on a hunger fast at Azad Maidan, took over roads and pavements leading to shutdowns.

The debate on the quota aside, especially as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis affirmed that the reservation was granted but would have to fit into constitutional norms, there are hard questions about the nature of this protest in which Patil demands that all Marathas are considered Kunbis, its part-occupation of south Mumbai, and its temporal quality adding to the city's chaos. To what extent can a mass agitation take over parts of a city like Mumbai?