Mumbai: Mumbai came to a grinding halt on Friday as Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil arrived at Azad Maidan to launch an indefinite hunger strike, pressing for the community’s long-standing demand for reservation. The 43-year-old activist, who has emerged as the face of the movement, was greeted with a thunderous welcome by thousands of supporters donning saffron caps, scarves and waving flags.
Jarange, addressing the gathering, vowed not to leave Azad Maidan until the state government conceded to the community’s demands. His supporters, who had been converging at the venue since early morning, blocked arterial roads and sat outside the ground, creating a commotion that brought traffic to a standstill in South Mumbai.
CSMT, Fort Area Bottlenecked
By mid-morning, the impact of the mobilisation was visible across the city’s southern precincts. Key stretches leading to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Fort and Nariman Point were completely choked, with stranded commuters reporting traffic snarls stretching for hours. The Eastern Freeway was fully blocked by protesters, while the Coastal Road remained jammed from Priyadarshini Park to Nariman Point.
Mumbai Traffic Police issued repeated advisories throughout the day, urging motorists to avoid South Mumbai altogether. “Due to agitation at Azad Maidan, avoid using freeway, please plan accordingly,” one update read. Another warned, “Due to political agitation, people are requested to avoid going towards CST and surrounding areas.”
The city’s bus services were equally paralysed. In a statement posted on X, BEST said all routes from CSMT were shut, leaving buses stranded with no alternative diversions available. Services across multiple corridors were reported to be irregular and delayed.
On the ground, visuals from CSMT and the Fort area showed a sea of protesters marching in unison, chanting slogans and waving placards as they blocked every available road. Hundreds of supporters even spilled into platforms at CSMT, adding to the chaos for suburban rail passengers.
With the swelling crowds raising fears of a law-and-order situation, police and paramilitary forces, including CRPF units, were deployed in large numbers around Azad Maidan to keep the situation under control.
