Mumbai: The Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, which has been walking a tightrope, struggling to clinch the support of both the Marathas and the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) ahead of the October assembly polls, has decided to consolidate the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) primary support base now.

The state cabinet has decided to set up two corporations for the economic development of the Brahmin and Rajput communities, respectively.

At the cabinet meeting held on Monday, the Maharashtra government gave its nod to the ‘Parshuram Economic Development Corporation’ for Brahmins and the ‘Veer Shiromani Maharana Pratap Economic Development Corporation’ for the Rajputs.

The move comes in the backdrop of the ongoing reservation issue for the Marathas and the tussle between the dominant Maratha and OBC communities.

According to the cabinet meeting press release, the two corporations would address economic challenges by providing financial assistance, skill development and self-employment opportunities to the weaker sections in both communities.

The government has set aside Rs 50 crore each for the two corporations.

The corporation for the Brahmin community would be headquartered in Pune, while that of the Rajput community would be in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

“This decision has come because there has been a demand for this from the communities for a long time,” said BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari.

“Just like how SAARTHI and BARTI (scholarships for the Maratha and SC communities, respectively) help students, similarly, these corporations will help the economically weaker sections in these two communities,” said Bhandari.

Also Read: Backed by Mahayuti, shared stage with RSS chief—who is ‘seer’ Ramgiri Maharaj

Core support base

Over the past year, the state has been undergoing tensions between the Maratha and OBC communities.

Marathas, the dominant caste, accounting for nearly 30% of the population and politically powerful in the state, have been demanding the Kunbi, or OBC caste certificates. Maratha activist Manoj Jarange Patil has kept state leaders on tenterhooks by asking them to put the Marathas in the OBC category.

However, this has aggravated the OBC communities, which, led by NCP (Ajit Pawar) party’s leader Chaggan Bhujbal have opposed the inclusion of Marathas into their category.

Although the OBCs have been voting for the BJP for the past decade, the Maratha vote bank has now scattered between the NCP, the Congress, and the Shiv Sena. The Brahmin votes, however, have always consolidated firmly behind the BJP.

“When all other communities have some corporation or the other, the government must have thought, why leave the minority community and must give it to them too, since Brahmins have been demanding it for quite some time now. I, however, do not think this will have much impact on the elections,” said political analyst Abhay Deshpande.

“Besides, Brahmins have always been the core voters for BJP. In the recent past, some of the Brahmins have been feeling neglected — ‘despite continuously voting for the BJP, they are not getting anything in return’. So, this may be a way to keep them happy,” said Deshpande

However, Bhandari said the move has nothing to do with elections.

“These communities are a smaller fraction. Who will you call a vote bank? Someone who comprises 10, 15, or 26 percent of the population? How can such a small percentage be a vote bank?” asked Bhandari.

He said Brahmins are 3 percent or a maximum of 3.5 percent of the population.

Another BJP MLA, Ram Kadam, said Brahmin and Rajput corporations are not a new demand. The demand, he said, has been there for quite some time. “After our government came to power, we analysed these communities. We realised that, within these communities, there are weaker sections, which, indeed, need assistance. If we have to go ahead with everyone, they need help,” said Kadam.

(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)

Also Read: 3 govts, 3 pivots: How farm loan waivers announced in Maharashtra fared over the years