Marathi Unity Prevails: Govt Halts Hindi-Imposition GRs Amid Backlash, Thackeray & MNS Warn Against Revival

A day after the state government reportedly scrapped two government resolutions (GRs) that sought to bring in Hindi as a compulsory third language in Marathi and English-medium schools for Classes 1 to 5, the ruling Mahayuti coalition insisted that the decision has only been suspended temporarily and will be revisited after an expert committee submits its report.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has announced the formation of a committee headed by former Planning Commission member Narendra Jadhav to examine the trilingual policy and recommend a course of action with the interests of Marathi-speaking students at the centre. The committee has been given a three-month deadline to submit its findings.

On Monday, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray criticised the move to appoint Jadhav, who is an economist. He said, “I respect Narendra Jadhav but the government’s attempt to undermine the issue as a matter of economics is laughable. This is an educational matter, and the forced imposition of Hindi is over. No one can impose Hindi on the Marathi people now.” He said the unity of the Marathi people has won, and no one will be able to impose Hindi on Maharashtra now.

Minister Uday Samant, however, called it a “battle for dominance”. He said, “If you look at the recent trolling of Marathi people, it’s clear that ‘M’ doesn’t stand for Marathi, it stands for Municipal Corporation. Citizens understand that this was a political issue.”

Thackeray said the state GRs related to the language policy were withdrawn to prevent a massive protest march. “If the government hadn’t done so, even Marathi supporters from the ruling BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction, and the NCP would have joined the protest on July 5,” he said. He added that unity exhibited by Marathi speakers had “shattered the heads of Marathi-haters”.

Uddhav Thackeray Claims Victory As Maharashtra Withdraws Hindi GRs Amidst Protest Threat

“On July 5, we will celebrate our victory. Discussions are ongoing with all those who have stood by us in this movement,” he added.

Meanwhile, MNS chief Raj Thackeray rejected the use of Hindi and asserted that even though the government has set up a high level committee to prepare a report, it’s not acceptable. “Why do we need Hindi? It’s the language of one province.

He said a victory meeting will be held on July 5. “There will be no flags at this gathering; it will be a gathering of Marathi people. There is no point in giving party labels to this victorious rally,” he said, adding that the state government should instead focus on the issues in the education sector. “There are no schools in many parts of the state. There are no teachers in some schools. Some teachers are not paid. There are many shortcomings in education. Discuss these issues in the legislature,” he said.