Suicide rocks Aurangabad

Mumbai: Umesh Atmaram Indait, an unemployed Maratha youth, allegedly hanged himself at his house in Aurangabad on Thursday afternoon. After photographs of his suicide note went viral on social media, agitations started in Aurangabad city. Protesters blocked roads and incidents of stone-pelting were also reported, police said.

With Indait’s death, the count of Maratha youth who have committed suicide so far in the last two weeks touches seven.

Despite appeals by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and prominent members of the Maratha community, this spate of suicides seems to be continuing.

In his suicide note, the Aurangabad youth is believed to have said, “I did not fulfil the dreams of my parents. I am still jobless even after completing my B.Sc because I belong to the Maratha community.”  

Meanwhile, the government is claiming that it has started various schemes for Maratha youth through the Annasaheb Patil Corporation and Mudra bank loans disbursements.

Indait was a resident of Choudhary Colony in Chikalthana area of Aurangabad. According to a senior police officer, “He took part in various protests for Maratha reservation. He was unhappy that he couldn't get a job as he was a Maratha, while others got employed despite having lesser marks than him.”

After Indait’s suicide note went viral, Maratha agitators came out and blocked many roads in the city on Thursday night. There was tension in the town on Friday, but the situation was under control, said the police.

According to the police, in all the cases till now, the victims have mentioned that they were ending their life for the cause of the quota, or because they were frustrated due to lack of job and education opportunities.

According to Bharatiya Janata Party sources, this spate of suicides is a matter of grave concern for the government.