Maratha Samaj

Marathas belong to one of the 96 different clans, known as the 96 Kuli Marathas or Chhānava Kule

The history of the Maratha caste prior to Shivaji Maharaj 1680 is sparsely illuminated, although there is reference to the Marathas as the ruling class of the Deccan region.

Shivaji, born into the Bhosale clan of Marathas, secured an independent state by dint of lifelong struggle and thereby founded an empire, the remnants of which lasted until the independence of India in 1947. The state thus founded by Shivaji attained its zenith under the Peshwas in the eighteenth century, extending from the Indus in present-day Pakistan to Orissa in the east and from the Punjab to central Karnataka in the south. At its peak, the Maratha Empire established a protectorate over the Mughal emperor and paramountcy over the numerous Rajput chieftains of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Central India and elsewhere. This vast empire declined gradually after the Third Battle of Panipat (1761) in which Afghan leader Ahmad Shah Abdali defeated the Marathas; by 1849, all of present-day India had fallen to the British East India Company.

Marathas have dominated the state politics of Maharashtra since its inception in 1960. Since then, Maharashtra has witnessed heavy presence of Maratha ministers or officials (which comprises 25% of the state) in the Maharashtra state government, local municipal commissions, and panchayat