Imposition of Hindi withdrawn solely due to pressure from Marathi people: Raj Thackeray

Mumbai, June 29 (IANS) Maharashtra Navnirman Sena founder Raj Thackeray on Sunday said that the government has finally withdrawn its decision to impose the Hindi language under the pretext of teaching three languages from the first grade.

“The government has cancelled the two government resolutions (GR) related to this. This cannot be called belated wisdom, because this imposition was withdrawn solely due to the pressure from the Marathi people. Why the government was so adamant about the Hindi language and who exactly was pressuring the government for this remains a mystery,” he said in his reactions after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced the formation of a committee headed by former Planning Commission member Narendra Jadhav to prepare a report on a trilingual policy in the state.

“One more thing: the government has once again appointed a new committee. I say clearly, let the committee’s report come or not, but such actions will not be tolerated again, and that’s final! The government should engrave this in their minds forever! We assume this decision has been permanently cancelled, and the people of Maharashtra have assumed the same. So, do not create confusion with the committee’s report again; otherwise, the government should note that this committee will not be allowed to function in Maharashtra,” warned Raj Thackeray in a post on X.

“But the attempt to impose three languages just so students in Maharashtra must learn Hindi has finally been quashed, and for this, congratulations to all the people of Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena had been raising its voice on this issue since April 2025, and from then on, the issue started gaining traction. After that, one by one, political parties began to speak up. When the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena decided to hold a non-partisan march, many political parties and organisations expressed their readiness to participate. If this morcha had taken place, it would have been so massive that it would have reminded us of the United Maharashtra Movement. Perhaps the government got intimidated by this unity, but that’s fine—this fear is necessary,” said Raj Thackeray.

“Now, the Marathi people must learn from this. Your existence, your language, is being targeted by our own people, and for them, the language they studied in, grew up with, the language that is their identity, means nothing... Perhaps they are trying to please someone. This time, the collective anger of Marathi hearts was visible, and it should be seen again and again,” remarked the MNS founder.

“Be that as it may, seeing Marathi people unite for their language is a matter of joy. May this fervour grow stronger, and may the Marathi language become a language of knowledge and global affairs—this is our wish. Congratulations to the Marathi people once again,” he said.

Raj Thackeray had planned a morcha on July 5 against the imposition of Hindi, and he received support from his estranged brother Uddhav Thackeray, who also announced support for the protest. However, with the government's decision, Raj Thackeray is not expected to proceed with his decision to take out the morcha on July 5.

--IANS

sj/uk