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.…