MNS warns of agitation over Hindi in Maharashtra schools

MNS chief Raj Thackeray held a press conference on Wednesday strongly reacting to a recent government resolution GR issued by the Maharashtra School Education Department on TuesdayThackeray has strongly opposed the move to make Hindi a compulsory third language in Maharashtra schools He questioned whether similar rules would be enforced in states like Kerala Tamil Nadu Gujarat or even UP MP and BiharHe expressed concern over the Marathi languages future warning that such impositions could erode the identity and legacy of Marathi peopleThackeray said he has spoken to the Chief Minister who assured reconsideration of the decision He plans to write a third letter urging its withdrawal ldquoChildren should not be burdened with the compulsion of Hindirdquo he asserted vowing to resist the moveRaj Thackeray questioned the logic behind imposing Hindi as a compulsory third language in Maharashtra pointing out that even Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have not enforced such a rule in his home state of GujaratldquoIf PM Modi himself isnrsquot making Hindi compulsory in Gujarat then why is it being forced on Maharashtrardquo he asked reiterating that such decisions undermine regional languages and identitiesThe GR is part of the implementation of the State Curriculum Framework for School Education 2024 aligned with the National Education Policy NEP 2020According to the resolution Hindi will ldquogenerallyrdquo be introduced as the third language for students from Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools across the stateReacting sharply Thackeray questioned the need to impose Hindi in a state that has clearly not demanded it as a compulsory third language ldquoI have already written two letters to the government on this issue Today my third letter will be sent Why are these textbooks being printed when Maharashtra has not asked for Hindi as a third language Who is behind this decisionrdquo he askedThackeray voiced serious concern over what he described as increasing political interference in the education system ldquoWhy are political parties deciding what our children should learn Why is this being forced on Maharashtrardquo he said While acknowledging the importance of all languages including Hindi he emphasised that Hindi is not our state or national language ldquoIt is an official language not our state language Then why is it being imposedrdquoHe called upon students teachers and the general public of Maharashtra to question this policy ldquoI urge everyonemdashstudents educators and parentsmdashto raise your voice Ask the authorities why wersquore being made to accept this Maharashtra will not tolerate such forced decisionsrdquo he declaredThackeray also drew attention to what he sees as hypocrisy at the Centre ldquoWhen Prime Minister Modi and Amit Shah are in power at the Centre and Hindi is not being forced in Gujarat why is it being forced here in Maharashtra Is there an ulterior motive Are they trying to make it easier for IAS officers who donrsquot want to learn MarathirdquoReaffirming his stand Thackeray said ldquoToday my letter is going out to all schools Let me see who goes ahead and starts teaching Hindi as the third language We will not remain silent I donrsquot understand what political game is being played here but we will oppose itrdquoHe concluded by appealing to Maharashtrarsquos writers artists and intellectuals to join the resistance against the forced imposition of Hindi in the states schools calling it an attack on Maharashtrarsquos linguistic and cultural identityldquo hellip pictwittercomv5xgQH4IIMmdash MNS Adhikrut mnsadhikrut June 18 2025Since April the education department has been in a state of chaos in Maharashtra First it was decided that three languages should be taught from class one in schools following the Maharashtra State Board of Education curriculum and Marathi English and Hindi should be made compulsory This decision was strongly opposed by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena which formed a public opinion Realising that the government swiftly found a loophole and said that Hindi would not be compulsory but if anyone wanted to learn Hindi that curriculum would be made available Raj Thackeray stated in a post on XThe government just blindly follows orders from above but you need not fall prey to it And if you are forced by the government we are here to support To become welleducated model citizens who can make the nation and Maharashtra proud you need to know one state language and one world language Why learn more of them But we must understand the political motive behind this The people of the north want to capture a civilised Maharashtra and the easy way to do that is to impose their language directly or indirectly Do not fall prey to their politics the post addedJai Maharashtra to all the principals of schools in MaharashtraSince April the education department has been in a state of chaos in Maharashtra First it was decided that three languages should be taught from class one in schools following the Maharashtra State Board ofhellip pictwittercom9mknXkXfGCmdash Raj Thackeray RajThackeray June 18 2025