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CM Fadnavis on Marathi row: 'Won't tolerate hooliganism in the name of language'
His remarks came after a group, wearing Raj Thackeray-led party Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) scarves, thrashed a food stall owner for not speaking Marathi.
Amid escalating Marathi language controversy in Maharashtra, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said that hooliganism in the name of language will not be tolerated in the state.
“Having pride in the Marathi language is not wrong, but if someone engages in hooliganism in the name of language, we will not tolerate it,” Fadnavis said while interacting with the media. "If anyone resorts to violence based on language, it will not be tolerated."
The chief minister's remarks came days after a group of men, wearing Raj Thackeray-led party Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) scarves, thrashed a food stall owner for not speaking Marathi in Thane's Bhayander.
“If you don’t know Marathi, don’t live in Maharashtra. If you don’t speak in Marathi, we will beat everyone and drive them away, and we will break and burn down your shop,” they said.
After the stall owner, identified as Babulal Khimaji Chaudhary, demanded to know what government rule required people to speak in Marathi. In response, the men asked Chaudhary what language was spoken in Maharashtra. When he replied, “All languages,” they grew very angry and slapped and punched Chaudhary in the face, head and neck.
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The incident sparked a huge row in Maharashtra, with many condemning the act.
“FIR registered, action taken by police”
On Friday, Fadnavis said that the police have registered an FIR and have taken action in connection with the assault of the food stall owner.
“The police have filed an FIR and taken action on the incident, and if anyone creates such a language dispute in future, legal action will be taken. We are proud of our Marathi, but injustice cannot be done to any language of India in this manner. We will have to keep this in mind,” Fadnavis said.
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"And sometimes I am surprised that these people embrace English and create disputes over Hindi. What kind of thinking is this and what kind of action is this? Therefore, strict action will be taken against those who take the law into their own hands," the chief minister added.
