Mumbai, July 24: The Maratha agitators, who have held a sit-in protest early morning on Tuesday at various places of the state, have turned violent as per reports. According to ANI, the protestors torched two fire engines and other vehicles, including police van and state transport buses at Aurangabad highway at Gangapur. Due to these violent demonstrations, heavy police bandobast has been deployed to manage the situation. The reports further mention that, as a precautionary measure, the internet service in a few parts of Maharashtra has been suspended.

Although Mumbai, the capital city of the state remained unaffected due to the bandh, in different parts of the state raging uproar against the government was seen. The protestors also stalled express trains at Parbhani railway station. Furthermore, an effigy of CM Devendra Fadnavis was burned by agitators as a mark of protest. Besides this, two more youths attempted to commit suicide. Jayant Sonawane jumped into the river and other youth named Jagannath Sonawane consumed poison. Both have been admitted to the hospital.

Here is the tweet from ANI about Maratha protest:

The death of the Maratha youth  Kakasheb Shinde who jumped into River Godavari on Monday sparked the protests and called for an immediate bandh in Maharashtra. The community wants a separate reservation for them like ST/SCs in education and government jobs. Moreover, after the tragic death of the youth in Aurangabad, the Maratha Kranti Morcha, a leading Maratha outfit refused to accept the  body of the youth or perform his last rites until Rs 50 lakh compensation and a government job is given to the kin. Besides this, the agitators have also demanded to declare the deceased a martyr, as he sacrificed his life for the community. The members of the group also had their heads tonsured in protest.

Usmanabad, Aurangabad, Parbhani and Nanded are a few of the places in Maharashtra, which are severely affected due to the statewide bandh called by the  Marathas. Apart from these places, violent demonstrations have been reported in various parts of the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 24, 2018 01:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).