MUMBAI, Sept. 1 -- As the Maratha agitation entered its fourth day without a single Mahayuti minister meeting Manoj Jarange-Patil, the reservation activist accused the state government of ignoring his community and announced that if his demands were not met, he would not drink water from Monday. He also warned that more Marathas from across Maharashtra would flood the city the following weekend as well. Jarange-Patil blamed chief minister Devendra Fadnavis for creating "instability" in Maharashtra. "Due to his stubbornness, Marathas were forced to come to Mumbai to protest," he said. "The same Fadnavis, when in the opposition, had claimed that our community could get reservations if there was political will. After coming to power, he changed colour like a chameleon." In his continuing tirade, Jarange-Patil declared that Fadnavis was a blot on the BJP, and prime minister Narendra Modi needed to think about this. "He asked policemen to dress like our activists and spread rumours that I had asked people to go back," he said. "Those policemen should immediately be suspended." Jarange demanded that the government immediately accept the 1884 Hyderabad Gazette (which reportedly showed that Marathas and Kunbis, an OBC sub-caste, were the same) for the Marathwada region. "No one can stop us from going into the OBC category," he said. "But the government is ignoring us, as it has no intention of giving us reservation. Let me warn them that if the Maratha community decides, not a single candidate of the Mahayuti government will be elected in the gram panchayat elections." Jarange-Patil also questioned how, if there was a 50% quota limit imposed by the Supreme Court, Maharashtra was already giving 52%. "Also, if the inclusion of several castes in the OBC category over the last two decades is acceptable, how is only including the Maratha community invalid?" The activist, in his speech also slammed Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray for his statement on Jarange's equation with Eknath Shinde and why he was again in Mumbai if he and Shinde had celebrated in Navi Mumbai last year. "Raj Thackeray is gullible-he listens to anything and anyone and believes it," he said. "But he should stay away from speaking on the Maratha issue. Did I speak about him when he lost all his MLAs and power in the Nashik municipal corporation? CM Fadnavis ensured his party's defeat in the assembly election, and even his son lost the election. But Raj Thackeray is content with the CM responding to his invitations and visiting his home." Jarange also censured BJP minister Chandrakant Patil for his statement that Marathas were not a backward community and could not get reservation from the OBC quota. "Chandrakant Patil should not speak too much," he said. "We know that he stopped the Kunbi certificate distribution on Fadnavis' instructions." Meanwhile, the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha reservation met on Sunday afternoon and discussed the possible issuing of Kunbi certificates to Marathas in the Marathwada region. Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, president of the sub-committee, said that several high court and Supreme Court judgments were hampering the government, and legal opinion was needed. Consequently, that evening Vikhe Patil and other sub-committee members held a meeting with advocate-general Birendra Saraf, which retired judge Sandip Shinde attended via video-conferencing. Vikhe Patil asked Saraf to look into the legal aspects of implementing the Hyderabad Gazette and Satara Gazette. After the discussion, Saraf and Shinde sought some time to study the matter. "We want to legally validate the process of implementing the Hyderabad Gazette. Advocate general and Justice Shinde said they need some time to study it and would give their opinion later," said Vikhe Patil. "The OBC quota will not be affected by this implementation, and OBC leaders should not worry about it."...