The turmoil in Maharashtra's Beed district, stemming from ongoing protests for the Maratha reservation, has led to the apprehension of 49 individuals, as reported by an official on Tuesday.
In response to a series of violent incidents and property damage directed at politicians, curfew measures were imposed in specific areas of Beed district on Monday evening.
Beed's Superintendent of Police, Nandkumar Thakur, assured that the situation is currently under control. He elaborated, stating that charges related to rioting and endangering lives have been registered in connection with these occurrences. To date, 49 protesters have been taken into custody. Fortunately, no adverse events transpired during the night, and the situation remains manageable.
To uphold law and order, additional police forces have been dispatched to the district, according to the official.
Per an order issued by Beed Collector Deepa Mudhol Munde, a curfew spanning a 5-kilometer radius from the collector's office, the head offices of talukas, and all national highways traversing the district has been enacted, as disclosed by another official.
Earlier on Monday, a group of protesters targeted the residence of NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) MLA Prakash Solanke in Majalgaon town, Beed district. The aggressors set the MLA's residence ablaze and launched stones at it. The outburst was precipitated by the circulation of an audio clip purportedly featuring the MLA commenting on the Maratha quota agitation and indirectly alluding to the fasting quota activist Manoj Jarange.
Following the attack on the legislator's home, the agitators proceeded to set fire to the first floor of the Majalgaon Municipal Council building and engaged in acts of vandalism.
On Monday evening, a contingent of Maratha reservation activists forcibly entered the residential premises and office of NCP MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar in Beed city, where they ignited fires.
In a separate incident, the residence of former state minister Jaydutt Kshirsagar was also targeted, suffering arson and stone-throwing by protesters in Beed city.
A crowd of Maratha agitators amassed outside the residence of NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) leader Amar Singh Pandit, leading to the deployment of tear-gas shells by the police to disperse the demonstrators.
These episodes of violence and arson unfolded while Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange continued his indefinite hunger strike in Antarwali Sarati village, Jalna district, which commenced on October 25 in support of the reservation demand.
Members of the Maratha community have been staging protests across various parts of the state, advocating for reservation in government employment and educational opportunities under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.
