Will "Shut Down" Maharashtra Schools If Hindi Imposed From Class 1: Raj Thackeray

MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Friday warned Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis that if Hindi was made compulsory for Classes 1 to 5 in the state, "we will not hesitate to shut down schools".

Speaking at a rally at Mira Bhayandar in the district, he asked the people of Maharashtra to stay alert and foil any plan of the government to impose Hindi.

Earlier, workers of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had roughed up a local shopkeeper after he allegedly refused to speak in Marathi.

The BJP-led government recently withdrew two orders making Hindi mandatory in primary schools following strong opposition.

Fadnavis, however, asserted on Thursday that the government will certainly introduce the three-language formula, but whether Hindi should be taught from Class 1 or Class 5 will be decided by the committee appointed to study the issue.

Raj Thackeray, in his speech, dared Fadnavis to impose Hindi. "When they tried it once, we had shut down shops, and now we will not hesitate to shut down schools if Hindi is imposed (from Class 1 to 5)," he said.

It was unfortunate that the chief minister of Maharashtra was striving to make Hindi compulsory, the MNS chief said.

By imposing Hindi, the government was testing the people's response as it eventually wanted to attach Mumbai to Gujarat, Mr Thackeray alleged.

Hindi was just "200 years old" while Marathi has a history of 2,500-3,000 years, he said.

When migrants from Bihar were beaten up and driven away in Gujarat, it did not become an issue, but a minor incident in Maharashtra became a national issue, Raj Thackeray alleged.

He also came down heavily on BJP MP Nishikant Dubey over his reported "patak patak ke marenge" remark, daring him to come to Mumbai.

"Dube-dube ke marenge," Mr Thackeray said.

He also referred to Morarji Desai and Vallabhbhai Patel's alleged anti-Marathi stand after independence.

Maharashtrians should insist on speaking in Marathi everywhere in the state and make others speak the language, he said.

Under the garb of Hindutva, there is an attempt to impose Hindi, he said.

Raj, however, also stated that he can speak Hindi better than any other politician in Maharashtra, as his father was fluent in Hindi, and he was not against any language per se but opposed its imposition.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)