'Not against Hindi': Team Uddhav 'softens' stance over language row, distances from Stalin's hardline approach

Raut, who is a close aide of Uddhav and a friend of Raj, said that they are not against Hindi language but forceful imposition in primary education. He also seemed to distance the party from Stalin's hardline stance.

Mumbai: In a significant development involving the I.N.D.I.A. opposition bloc, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut seemed to distance himself from Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK leader M K Stalin on the issue of Hindi.

“M K Stalin has congratulated us on this win of ours and said that he will learn from this. We wish him the best,” said Raut acknowledging the Tamil Nadu chief minister’s appreciation of the Thackeray brothers but seemed to

After Saturday’s joint rally of Shiv Sena (UBT) head Uddhav Thackeray and MNS president Raj Thackeray, Stalin had said: “The enthusiasm and powerful oratory of a rally held in Mumbai under the leadership of Uddhav Thackeray against Hindi imposition fills us with immense excitement. I know well that the Union government, which prioritizes the promotion of Hindi and Sanskrit full-time, has no answers to the questions raised by Raj Thackeray….the struggle to protect their language by the DMK and the people of Tamil Nadu against imposition of Hindi has now transcended boundaries and is swirling like a storm in Maharashtra.”

Raut, who is a close aide of Uddhav and a friend of Raj, and was instrumental in bringing them together for the cause of Marathi, said that they are not against Hindi language but forceful imposition in primary education. “We speak in Hindi…. I speak in Hindi, I read Hindi, and think in Hindi…there are Hindi cinemas which are made here, there are Hindi theatres, there are Hindi books, there are Hindi newspapers,” he said.

MNS leader and former minister of state for home Bala Nandgaonkar clarified that the two parties are not against Hindi. “We are against the introduction of Hindi in classes 1-5,” he said.

"The Southern states have been fighting for this issue for years. Their stand against the imposition of Hindi means they will not speak Hindi and neither let anyone speak Hindi. Their motive is not to let Hindi get imposed on them, but our stand is different. We speak Hindi... our stand is that the strictness for Hindi in primary schools will not be tolerated, our fight is limited to this,” said Raut, a journalist-politician.

On the allegations of BJP that the Thackerays have made the issue of Hindi-Marathi political, he said, “Yes, the two brothers have come together for politics…otherwise what have they come together for? Why have you come together with (deputy chief ministers) Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare…is that for social service or distribution of wealth that they had accumulated?

Raut claimed that Maha Yuti leaders including chief minister Devendra Fadnavis are rattled by the two Thackerays coming together.

Hitting out Fadnavis reaction about Uddhav’s speech being a rudali, he said: “Fadnavis and Shinde should start a rudali programme now…Fadnavis can sing, Shinde can play tabla…Shinde can sing, Fadnavis can play tabla…Ajit Pawar can play tun-tuna.”