Maratha leader and Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) member of Parliament (MP) Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, a descendent of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, will on Sunday announce the next move over the community’s agitation for reservation in education and government jobs. SambhajirajeChhatrapati will attend a function at Raigad Fort in the Mahad area of Raigad district of Maharashtra on the occasion of the coronation day anniversary of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on Sunday. Last month, the lawmaker gave an ultimatum to the MahaVikasAghadi government and raised several demands, including review and curative petitions in the Supreme Court against its order to scrap the quota, as well as a petition to the Centre for the reservation. SambhajirajeChhatrapati also demanded other benefits such as hostel facilities and scholarships for the community’s students and revival of Pune-based SARTHI to ensure the educational and social well-being of the Maratha youth.

The Supreme Court on May 5 struck down the Maharashtra law granting quota to the Maratha community in education and government jobs, saying it was "unconstitutional”. The top court said people from the community can’t be declared educationally and socially backward just to bring them into the reserved category. It also held that there were no exceptional circumstances to breach the 50 percent reservation cap set by the 1992 Indra Sawhney case, popularly known as the Mandal Commission case.

Marathas were given 12% and 13% quota in education and government jobs, respectively, under the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act, 2018.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led state government appointed a committee of retired high court judge DilipBhosale to study the ruling and suggest a way forward. The committee, in its report submitted on Friday, has recommended the government to move a review petition in the SC challenging its verdict.

SambhajiChhatrapati, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominated RajyaSabha member, has also met Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar in May to discuss the Maratha reservation issue and urged him to take an initiative in the matter.