High Drama at Maharashtra Secretariat as Deputy Speaker, 3 Lawmakers Jump Off 3rd Floor, Land on Net

Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal and three other legislators shocked onlookers at Mumbai’s state secretariat on Friday by jumping from the third floor in protest against the possible inclusion of the Dhangar community in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) category.

Zirwal, part of the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), along with a BJP MP and two other legislators, safely landed on a protective net installed one floor below. The net, placed in 2018 to prevent suicide attempts, ensured none of the politicians were injured.

The protest aimed to oppose ongoing government discussions about reclassifying the Dhangar community from the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category to the ST category.

Tribal MLAs had earlier demonstrated within the Mantralaya complex, where a cabinet meeting was being held with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Ministers Ajit Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis in attendance.

Videos later surfaced showing the legislators safely climbing back into the building after landing on the net.

Meanwhile, Dhangar community members have been holding demonstrations in Pandharpur, Solapur district, asserting that they are the same as Dhangads, a group already listed as ST in other states.