SP leader slams Maharashtra govt over Marathi mandate for drivers, says will hurt Mumbai's growth

SP leader slams Maharashtra govt over Marathi mandate for drivers, says will hurt Mumbai's growth

Mumbai, Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Azmi on Thursday lashed out at the Maharashtra government over the August 15 deadline mandating taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers to learn Marathi, claiming this would be a "great injustice" and halt Mumbai's pace.

SP leader slams Maharashtra govt over Marathi mandate for drivers, says will hurt Mumbai's growth

Talking to PTI Videos, Azmi alleged that the government's decision was politically motivated.

The legislator from Mumbai suggested adopting a gradual approach so that drivers can pick up the language over one to three years, and said he had spoken to the chief minister over the issue.

He made the remarks a day after Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik said the government will not extend the August 15 deadline for non-Marathi taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers to learn Marathi.

Azmi reminded that Mumbai had become the country's economic capital after Kolkata lost its position due to conflicts between locals and migrants from UP and Bihar who used to operate auto-rickshaws there.

"Our ancestors used to first go to Kolkata for work. There were clashes between locals and outsiders, and eventually people migrated to Mumbai," he said.

"Marathi deserves great respect; it should be there, but if these people talk like this, then what will happen here?" asked the MLA from Mankhurd in Mumbai.

Azmi said he had spoken to the chief minister, who assured him there would be no such problems.

The SP leader said he has urged the government to extend the deadline by six months, arguing that workers who drive vehicles and serve the city should not be penalised.

"If they are so stubborn and want people to migrate out of Mumbai? If you treat the workers who work in Mumbai, drive vehicles, serve Mumbai like this, then I think this would be a great injustice, and Mumbai's pace will stop," he claimed.

Azmi suggested a gradual approach, giving time to cab drivers to learn the language, and said it will happen slowly.

"Language is fully respected, but one learns gradually. If you give them such a deadline and cancel their licenses now, there will be starvation, poverty, and trouble in the country. This is absolutely not right," he said.

Recalling the COVID‑19 crisis, Azmi pointed out that when migrant workers left Mumbai, the city struggled. When the pandemic receded, people started sending vehicles to Bihar and UP, booking train tickets, asking the labourers to return quickly.

"Ask businessmen, builders, people from big factories - who does the work? A person comes here for a few days to earn a living; it is not right to trouble him like this," he said.

"Do it gradually, make Marathi compulsory in schools, start Marathi classes, distribute books, explain it lovingly to people. Slowly, slowly, in one, two, three years, it will be fine," the SP leader said.

Asked about the mindset behind such decisions, Azmi said, "This is nothing but politics for votes."

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.