Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut launched a counterattack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on a comparison between the Marathi language row and the Pahalgam terror attack, saying it shows the party’s ‘mindset .
Raut asked if the Marathi language wouldn’t be in Maharashtra, would it be in Pakistan?
“A few people refuse to accept the culture and the Marathi language. If not in Maharashtra, where would the Marathi language be – in Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Nepal?… If people do a movement for any language, Ashish Shelar compares them to terrorists of Pahalgam, it’s wrong, and it shows the BJP’s mindset,” ANI news agency quoted Raut as saying.
Earlier, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had said that if his party workers had to be goons for the Marathi language, then they were goons.
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What did Ashish Selar say in the Marathi language row?
BJP Mumbai President and Maharashtra IT & Cultural Minister Ashish Shelar drew sharp comparisons while responding to the ongoing debate over the imposition of Marathi. Speaking critically of recent violent incidents, he likened them to the Pahalgam terror attack, where attackers allegedly asked victims about their religion before shooting them. Shelar stated that asking people about their language in Mumbai reflects “disappointing” and “disturbing” communal discrimination
He emphasized that the Maharashtra government supports optional multilingual education, where students can choose Hindi or other languages after fifth grade. Shelar described the current flip in narrative—mandating only Marathi—as “unrealistic, unreasonable and illogical”, asserting that such measures threaten harmony
Defending the BJP’s stance, he insisted that the party remains a firm advocate of Marathi culture while safeguarding non-Marathi residents’ rights. He warned that politicizing language could have severe social consequences, stating, “Marathi is not a political issue for us”, but “attacks based on language are unacceptable.” Shelar further predicted that Shiv Sena (UBT) and its allies would suffer electoral losses in upcoming civic elections due to these divisive tactics
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