New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) Amid a language war in Maharashtra, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis asserted on Thursday that language cannot be a means of discord and a Marathi person can never be narrow-minded on such issues.
Addressing a function at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) here, Fadnavis said his government’s policy has been Marathi along with other Indian languages, even as parts of Mumbai were rocked by violent protests against the “imposition of Hindi” in Maharashtra.
“Language is a means of communication, but never of discord. Mother tongue is important. Every Marathi person is proud of the Marathi language. Insistence on Marathi is natural and justified, but we should also respect other Indian languages,” he said.
Fadnavis was speaking at a function to inaugurate the Kusumagraj Special Centre for Marathi Language, Literature and Culture and the Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Special Centre for Security and Strategic Studies at the JNU.
“The debate is not Marathi versus Hindi. There is no alternative to Marathi. A Marathi person has to accept Marathi. But our policy is Marathi along with other Indian languages. We should learn Marathi and also know other languages,” he said.
“I say time and again, a Marathi person can never be narrow-minded. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj never taught us to be narrow-minded. Sant Dyaneshwar prayed for the welfare of the entire world and not just his followers,” the chief minister added.
Fadnavis said a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji will also be installed at the JNU campus and Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit has agreed to a proposal of his government in this regard.
The Maharashtra government’s decision to introduce a three-language formula in primary schools led to protests by Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) over the “imposition of Hindi”.
The state government rolled back its decision, but the issue united the estranged Thackeray cousins, who claimed to have joined hands for the cause of Marathi.
Earlier, Fadnavis faced protests on the JNU campus from a group of Students’ Federation of India (SFI) activists.
The Kusumagraj Special Centre will focus on Marathi language, literature and cultural traditions and is named after the iconic Marathi poet and Jnanpith awardee.
It will offer postgraduate and certificate-level programmes to promote multilingualism and cultural understanding.
The Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Special Centre for Security and Strategic Studies will explore indigenous strategic traditions based on the Maratha empire. The centre is envisioned to become a hub for military history, strategy and future policy development rooted in India’s past. PTI MHS SKU RC
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