In a fresh escalation of Maharashtra’s ongoing language row, several workers of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) were detained in Mira Road, Thane, on Tuesday as they staged a protest without police permission.
The march was intended as a counter to traders’ protests over a recent assault incident, where MNS workers allegedly slapped a shopkeeper for not speaking Marathi.
Members of Raj Thackeray’s MNS party were detained during a protest, and alleged that the Maharashtra government was not allowing “Marathi people’s march”.
Dramatic scenes unfolded as MNS supporters clashed with police, who detained them and loaded them into vans. Protesters questioned why permission was granted to traders for their march but denied to MNS for the counter-demonstration. Many reiterated their party’s stance that anyone residing in Maharashtra must speak Marathi and warned of consequences for those who refuse.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis denied claims of discrimination, explaining that permission was initially granted but later withdrawn after MNS insisted on taking a specific route deemed unsuitable for crowd management. He emphasized that Marathi people are “large-hearted” and such confrontational tactics would not succeed.
The protest follows the viral ‘slapgate’ video showing a Mira Road shopkeeper, Babulal Chaudhary, being attacked for allowing his staff to speak in Hindi. The incident has reignited political and linguistic tensions across the state.
The controversy is playing out alongside significant shifts in Maharashtra politics, including a reunion between estranged cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray. Uddhav Thackeray accused the BJP of exploiting the issue for political gain, calling it another example of the party’s “divide and rule” strategy. Meanwhile, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey stoked tensions further by daring MNS to try such actions outside Maharashtra, inviting a showdown in Hindi-speaking states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
The language debate was previously inflamed by the state government’s short-lived decision to mandate Hindi as a third language in primary schools, which was later rolled back following backlash.
