Mumbai, July 24: The Maratha Kranti Morcha, a leading outfit who has called a statewide bandh in Maharashtra on Monday has now intensified the protest and called for a similar agitation in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Palghar and Raigad districts on July 25, Wednesday. The bandh was triggered after a 28-year-old Maratha youth jumped into River Godavari on Monday, which led to his death. Following the incident, the agitators held violent demonstrations and burnt the CM's effigy as a mark of protest. Besides this, several protestors in Aurangabad also had their heads tonsured in protest. Maharashtra Bandh | What gets affected and what not?

As the Maratha Kranti Morcha has called a bandh in Mumbai and adjoining regions. The Mumbai Police Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO) Deepak Deoraj has ensured that all safety measures have been pressed into action. Besides this, the vigilance team has been instructed to keep a close watch on activities, especially in sensitive prone areas of Mumbai for today. Catch our LIVE news coverage on bandh in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Palghar today here. 

Here is the tweet of ANI of Mumbai Police CPRO Deepak Deoraj about the security measures taken for Mumbai bandh on July 25:

Different parts of the state-- Aurangabad, Usmanabad, Parbhani, Nashik, Shirdi -- saw violent protests on Monday. Several agitators gathered on streets and torched police vans, fire engines and state transport (ST) buses. As the situation turned tense, internet services at a few places were suspended by the government as a precautionary measure to avoid the spread of rumours. Heavy police bandobast was deployed at these places. Reportedly, a police constable who was deployed at the riot-hit area suffered a cardiac arrest and doctors declared him dead after he was brought to the hospital.

Furthermore, the opposition parties--NCP and Congress-- lambasted the Devendra Fadnavis-led state government. Former Minister and Maharashtra NCP president Jayant Patil in one of his tweets accused Fadnavis of misery in the state due to the protest. Patil also remarked that the violent demonstrations are taking place as the government did not fulfil their demands of reservation for Marathas even after coming into power.

The Marathas want a reservation in education and government jobs. The first protest was held by the community after a minor girl was brutally raped and murdered in Kopardi. The incident made the community observe a silent protest in  34 districts of Maharashtra last year. The protestors demanded punishment for the rape culprits, which was meted out by the fast track court earlier. The Marathas believe that separate reservations would help the community, just like it did the ST/SC community, get admissions in good colleges and better professional opportunities.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 25, 2018 08:39 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).