Mumbai, April 29 (IANS) The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray(UBT) on Wednesday accused the Mahayuti government of softening its initial hard stance on the mandatory use of the Marathi language by licensed auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers in Maharashtra, and termed it a retreat.

The Thackeray camp in the party’s mouthpiece, ‘Saamna’ editorial, said that while the government aggressively declared that Marathi would be compulsory starting May 1, it has now extended the deadline to August 15, providing a “window for learning” that critics describe as a retreat.

The editorial said that the issue stems from a long-standing grievance regarding non-local drivers in Maharashtra’s capital. Many rickshaw and taxi drivers who migrate to Mumbai for employment refuse to speak Marathi, often responding to passengers only in Hindi. This linguistic barrier has frequently led to misunderstandings, heated arguments, and even physical altercations on Mumbai streets. Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik recently announced that while the rule officially begins on May 1, no punitive action will be taken until August 15 to allow drivers time to learn the language. To facilitate this, the government plans to launch educational initiatives and print Marathi guidebooks, it added.

“The rule that Marathi must be spoken in Maharashtra’s capital is an old one. The credit for the prestige Marathi enjoys in Mumbai today belongs solely to Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena. Sarnaik’s questioning of Shiv Sena’s contribution is nonsense; the pride and character of Marathi that allow for such bold language today have been preserved by Shiv Sena for 58 years,” remarked the editorial.

The editorial further stated, “To curb the influx of people from all provinces into Mumbai, Balasaheb Thackeray had planned a ‘permit system’, but that plan was thwarted by the national leadership of the BJP at the time. Consequently, it is no surprise that the BJP remains silent regarding the compulsory Marathi rule for rickshaw drivers today.”

Against this backdrop, the editorial said that the extension given for the mandatory use of Marathi was a “weak” and “indecisive” move. “While Minister Sarnaik pushed the agenda, members of the ruling BJP have remained silent or expressed concerns about how quickly migrant drivers can learn a new language,” it added.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena said that Minister Sarnaik, who insists on Marathi, must continue to drive this initiative forward. “Maharashtra has a language policy focused on the protection, development, and increased administrative use of Marathi. Marathi is the official language of the state – the language of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, his soldiers, and the workers and farmers of Mumbai-Maharashtra. For outsiders to reject this language is an open rebellion against Maharashtra,” it added.

“While leaders celebrated the Central government granting Marathi the status of a ‘Classical Language’, the reality remains that a rickshaw puller in Mumbai still refuses to speak it. This defiance must end. The editorial concludes with a stern warning to the administration. Having already moved the goalposts once, the government is urged to remain firm on the August 15 deadline. It suggests that the ‘arrogance’ of refusing to speak the state’s official language in its own capital must be met with a consistent and strong policy push,” the editorial said.

–IANS

sj/dpb