Aurangabad, July 23:┬аThe Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has targeted the Maharashtra government over the suicide of a Maratha quota activist in Aurangabad earlier in the day. The party's state unit chief Jayant Patil said the administration should be held accountable for the incident.

Patil also questioned the Devendra Fadnavis-led government in the state for not adequately addressing the demands raised by the Maratha reservation activists. The former state minister has appealed the government to respond more sensitively towards the agitation.

The deceased, identified as 28-year-old┬аKakasaheb Dattatreya Shinde, jumped into the Godavari river near Kaigaon. Several Maratha outfits had gathered in the town to hold a procession seeking reservation for the community in educational institutions and government jobs.

Following Shinde's suicide, his body refused to take the body. The beraeved kin, along with the agitators, staged a roadblock in Kaigaon and other parts in the peripheries of Aurangabad, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Fadnavis.

Demonstrations were also organised in Thane, located adjacent to Mumbai, where Maratha community protesters smashed tomato on a dummy of Fadnavis to mark their angst.

Maratha groups have called a statewide shutdown on August 9 - commemorated as the August Kranti Day - to intensify their quota stir.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2018 10:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).