20 Years Later, Raj-Uddhav Together: Raj Thackeray Roars at Marathi Unity Platform

On the occasion, Raj Thackeray said, "I had said that Maharashtra is bigger than any dispute." After 20 years, we have come together on one platform. For us, there is no political agenda. Maharashtra and Marathi are our only agenda.

Addressing the crowd, Raj Thackeray said, "We are calm, but that doesn’t mean we are afraid of anyone. No one can separate Mumbai from Maharashtra. Hindi is a good language, but it cannot be imposed. Hindi-speaking people come to Maharashtra for employment."

The MNS chief added, "A minister met me and asked me to listen to his point. I clearly told him that I would listen but not agree. I asked him what the third language is in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan. These Hindi-speaking states are behind us, while we are ahead of them, so why should we be forced to learn Hindi? This is injustice."

Raj Thackeray further said, "When our children go to English-medium schools, questions are raised about our Marathi identity. Lal Krishna Advani studied in a missionary school; should we question his Hindutva? We will not tolerate the imposition of Hindi. They just want to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra; that’s their agenda. They are trying to divert the issue. Now they are raising the point that Thackeray’s children studied in English.What nonsense is this? Many BJP leaders have studied in English-medium schools, but does anyone doubt their Hindutva?"

He added, "In the South, Stalin, Kanimozhi, Jayalalithaa, Nara Lokesh, and Surya all studied in English. Balasaheb and my father Shrikant Thackeray studied in English, but they were deeply sensitive toward their mother tongue, Marathi. Balasaheb Thackeray studied in an English-medium school, but he never compromised on the Marathi language. No one should dare to look down upon Marathi."