Why has Manoj Jarange-Patil turned against Eknath Shinde? From a glass of juice to a Rs 500 crore row | Political Pulse News
In September 2023, Eknath Shinde offered Manoj Jarange-Patil a glass of fruit juice as the Maratha reservation activist ended his 17-day hunger strike. The meeting at Antarwali Sarati in Jalna district was a breakthrough for the then Chief Minister, who had persuaded Jarange-Patil to call off his agitation.
“I have maintained since day one that my belief is that only Eknath Shinde can give justice to the Maratha community,” Jarange-Patil said on September 14, 2023. He also expressed confidence that Shinde could take the decision needed to secure reservation.
Three years later, Jarange-Patil is accusing Shinde of being linked to an alleged attempt to buy his silence. At a rally in Beed on October 20, he claimed that Shinde had told BJP leaders that Rs 500 crore had been paid to him to stop his agitation. He also questioned whether the money had been routed through Shinde’s son, Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde.
On October 22, Jarange-Patil released a purported audio recording that he claimed supported his allegations. The recording has not been independently authenticated, and the allegation of a payment remains unproven. Shinde has denied giving or receiving any such money.
When Shinde was the man who could deliver
Jarange-Patil’s agitation gathered momentum after a police lathicharge at Antarwali Sarati on September 1, 2023. Shinde visited the protest site on September 14, assured him that the government would work towards reservation and persuaded him to end his fast.
The truce did not last. Jarange-Patil resumed his hunger strike in October, pressing the government to act faster. Shinde continued to hold talks with him, and in January 2024, another round of negotiations led the activist to call off his march towards Mumbai.
At this stage, Jarange-Patil was repeatedly targeting then Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, while Shinde remained an important interlocutor in the negotiations. The Chief Minister’s ability to reach an understanding with the activist helped him establish a working relationship with Patil, who left no stone unturned in praising Shinde while at the same time targeting Fadnavis.
The rupture
The first major public break came in February 2024 after Jarange-Patil accused Fadnavis of conspiring to eliminate him. Shinde responded by questioning the activist’s conduct and warning him against crossing limits.
“Initially, Jarange Patil made genuine demands and was honest with his cause. But now he is constantly changing his demands. Despite that we fulfilled all the demands… now his language has changed… he is speaking the language of Opposition leaders Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray,” Shinde had said in February 2024. This was one of the first instances of Shinde publicly speaking against Jarange. However, their working relationship seemed to have remained unaffected.
The political equations changed after the 2024 Assembly elections, when Fadnavis became Chief Minister and Shinde took over as Deputy Chief Minister.
In August 2025, Jarange-Patil began another hunger strike at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan. The government agreed to steps involving the Hyderabad Gazetteer to help eligible Marathas establish their Kunbi lineage. Jarange-Patil called off the five day protest after negotiations and a government resolution. While the Maratha reservation issue remained unresolved, the relationship between Shinde and Patil started going downhill.
The Parbhani showdown
The distance between the two became more apparent on August 31, 2026, when Shinde attended a farmers’ rally in Parbhani despite Jarange-Patil’s objections. The activist, who was then on hunger strike at Antarwali Sarati, had asked Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Jadhav to cancel the programme and warned Shinde against attending.
Jadhav refused, and Shinde went ahead with the rally. Jarange-Patil’s supporters raised slogans and displayed black flags at Shinde.
The episode brought the differences into the open, with Patil publicly challenging Deputy Chief Minister Shinde’s political programme in Marathwada.
After ending his latest hunger strike on September 17, Jarange-Patil accused Shinde and Fadnavis of acting against the Maratha community. He alleged that cases against protesters and inquiries by government agencies were part of an effort to suppress the movement. These claims have not been established.
The Rs 500 crore allegation
The latest confrontation began with Jarange-Patil’s allegation at his October 20 Dussehra rally in Beed that Shinde had told BJP leaders that Rs 500 crore had been paid to silence him.
“Whatever I heard apparently happened two and a half years ago. I have come to know from some leaders that Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde told the BJP leadership that they should pay Rs 500 crore to Jarange-Patil to silence him,” he said.
Shinde rejected the allegation on October 21.
“I have neither given Rs 500 crore to anyone nor taken it from anyone. On what basis is Jarange speaking? He should have verified the facts before speaking,” he told reporters. He asked Jarange-Patil to submit evidence to the authorities.
On Thursday, Jarange-Patil played a purported audio recording at a press conference in Jalna. He alleged it contained a conversation among BJP functionaries about efforts to counter his influence before the 2024 Assembly elections, including references to money allegedly paid to him through Shrikant Shinde.
The disclosure has also drawn the BJP and Shinde’s Shiv Sena into a public dispute. A Shiv Sena delegation met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday evening, demanding a forensic and cyber investigation, while the BJP has called for an inquiry into whether the recording is genuine or fabricated.
Maharashtra minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule asked Jarange-Patil to file a formal complaint and submit evidence to the authorities. “If Jarange has concrete evidence regarding the alleged Rs 500 crore payment … he should register an official complaint with the police or the district collector instead of speaking only to the media,” Bawankule said.
For Jarange-Patil, the allegations mark a sharp departure from the faith he once placed in Shinde. For the Deputy Chief Minister, the controversy has sharpened a political dispute with the Maratha activist, who until a few years ago was full of praise for Shinde’s leadership.
