Uddhav Thackeray alleges BJP trying to divide people on the basis of language

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday alleged that the BJP was trying to create division among people on the basis of language and accused the ruling party of imposing a ‘language emergency’ in Maharashtra. Speaking to reporters here, the former Maharashtra chief minister asserted that his party, a former ally of the BJP, was not against Hindi but asserted that it was definitely against the imposition of the language in the Marathi-speaking state. “We do not oppose or hate any language but that does not mean we will allow the imposition of any language,” he asserted amid the ongoing controversy over teaching Hindi to students from Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools. “The BJP is trying to create division among people on the basis of language,” he claimed. He alleged that the BJP’s hidden agenda is to impose Hindi. The former CM claimed, “The ruling party is imposing a language emergency. Amid the controversy over teaching Hindi as the third language besides Marathi and English in schools in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that the state government’s move to hold one meeting after another on the issue is an “insult” to Marathi. Speaking to reporters, Raut also questioned the “silence” of prominent Marathi literature figures and personalities and claimed that many of them are not speaking on the issue because of their links with the government. He also said that the children of many cabinet ministers and literary figures study in English medium schools, so they do not have the moral right to speak about the preservation of Marathi.