Language war in Maharashtra: Congress up in arms against 'Hindi imposition'

The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) has strongly opposed the recent government order mandating the compulsory teaching of Hindi in primary schools in Maharashtra. 

 

MPCC President Harshawardhan Sapkal stated that this move is part of a larger, devious RSS-BJP conspiracy to eliminate all languages from the Eighth Schedule and impose Hindi as the sole language across India. “We will resist this conspiracy and will not allow Marathi to be throttled,” he asserted firmly.

 

Speaking to the media, Sapkal clarified, “We have respect for the Hindi language, but coercion of any language is unacceptable. Marathi is not just a language – it is our way of life and culture.” He added that while different political parties, organisations, and institutions are opposing the imposition of Hindi in their ways, the Congress party has taken consistent action. “I have personally written to literary figures appealing for their support. Some are organising marches. Though the methods differ, the collective goal is to get this decision reversed.”

 

Sapkal emphasised that this is not just a language issue, but a cultural battle: “Whether or not someone calls or invites you to protest doesn’t matter – what matters is that we all unite to resist this cultural onslaught.” He reiterated that the Congress party has been opposing the compulsory imposition of Hindi from the very beginning.

 

Responding to a journalist’s question, Sapkal asked: “If Gujarat doesn’t have compulsory Hindi from Grade 1, then why is it being imposed only in Maharashtra? Why two different policies for two states? Fadnavis and Bawankule must answer this question and clarify their stance on this blatant double standard by the BJP.”

 

He further demanded that BJP leaders must make their position clear on M.S. Golwalkar’s controversial book Bunch of Thoughts, which reflects the ideological roots of such policies.

India