Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) – Ajit Pawar faction MLA and Deputy Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly, Narhari Jhirwal, jumped from the roof of Maharashtra Secretariat  on Friday and landed on a safety net.

Jhirwal allegedly jumped from the third floor of the Secretariat, the administrative headquarters of the Maharashtra Government in Mumbai.

He has been opposing the reservation for the Dhangar community from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) quota.

Visuals of the incident show Jhirwal, along with three others, climbing back inside the building after being blocked by the safety net during their fall from the third floor. The video footage also showed police personnel at the scene.

MLAs from the tribal community in Maharashtra staged a protest in the Secretariat on Friday as a Cabinet meeting, led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, was underway. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and other ministers were also present at the meeting.

The Dhangar community in Maharashtra, which currently falls under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, is protesting in Pandharpur, demanding reservation under the Scheduled Tribe category. They claim that they belong to the Dhangad community, which is already listed in the Constitution.

Agencies