Mumbai: Several Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers were detained by police in Mira Road, Thane, on Monday morning as they took out an unauthorized protest march, further escalating tensions surrounding the recent “slapgate” incident. The protest was a counter-march against outrage sparked when MNS workers were seen assaulting a food stall owner for not speaking Marathi.
Dramatic visuals from the scene showed police detaining protesting MNS workers and bundling them into vans. The MNS protest had not received police permission, and officers cited law and order concerns, including traffic disruption and the risk of a stampede, as reasons for the intervention.
MNS workers, however, voiced outrage during the detentions, questioning why traders were allowed to demonstrate against the assault but their protest was disallowed. Some went further, warning that anyone living in Maharashtra must speak Marathi and those who don’t would “face consequences.”
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended the police action, stating that the MNS leaders had been asked to take an alternate route for their rally but had refused to cooperate. “In Maharashtra, anyone can hold a protest after securing due permission. The police commissioner told me that MNS workers were asked to change their route, but they remained adamant. Hence, the protest was stopped,” Fadnavis said.
Taking a dig at the MNS, Fadnavis added, “I know Maharashtra’s mood. Such divisive experiments won’t succeed. A Marathi person has a large heart; he does not think in such narrow terms.”
At the heart of the controversy is the assault of a shopkeeper on Sunday night. The victim, 48-year-old Babulal Chaudhary, who runs the Jodhpur Sweet Shop in Mira Road, was slapped and threatened by seven MNS men because one of his staff, Mr. Bagharam, addressed them in Hindi. Despite Chaudhary’s clarification that multiple languages are spoken across Maharashtra, the men demanded Marathi be spoken and attacked him. The incident was caught on video and quickly went viral, igniting widespread public and political outrage.
The situation is unfolding against the backdrop of high-stakes political developments in Maharashtra. Notably, estranged cousins Uddhav Thackeray and MNS chief Raj Thackeray have realigned politically in what appears to be a united front against the BJP. The “slapgate” incident follows a controversy over the state government’s earlier attempt to introduce Hindi into the primary school curriculum—a move that was later rolled back after public outcry.
The issue has sparked fierce political sparring. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey launched a fiery attack on the Thackerays, challenging their alleged linguistic chauvinism and daring them to confront people in states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. “If you’re brave enough to beat Hindi speakers, why not Urdu, Tamil, or Telugu speakers too? Try stepping out of Maharashtra—come to Bihar, UP, or Tamil Nadu, and they’ll teach you a lesson,” Dubey said.
Uddhav Thackeray hit back, accusing the BJP of exploiting the language divide to distract from real issues. “This divide and rule politics is BJP’s tried-and-tested strategy. But its relevance is fading. I have nothing against any language, but I will oppose any form of imposition,” he told reporters. Thackeray also hinted that the BJP’s aggressive response may stem from anxiety over the success of the opposition’s rally held in Mumbai on Saturday.
As the political drama intensifies, the language debate has once again brought to the forefront questions of identity, inclusivity, and the role of linguistic pride in a multi-lingual state like Maharashtra. With emotions running high and political equations shifting rapidly, the issue is likely to remain at the center of the state’s discourse in the days ahead.
