Mumbai: Opposition parties on Wednesday slammed the Maharashtra government for its new order making Hindi the default, although not compulsory, third language in state board schools, saying it was an indirect attempt at “Hindi imposition” in the state.
While chief minister Devendra Fadnavis stressed that Hindi was not being made compulsory and was only optional, opposition leaders accused the Mahayuti government of “stabbing Maharashtra and the Marathi language in the heart”.
According to the new government resolution issued by the state school education department, Hindi will no longer be compulsory, but it will “in general” be the third language for Classes 1-5 in Marathi- and English-medium schools. Schools or parents may choose an alternative Indian language, provided that at least 20 students in a class opt for it, the order said.
The new directive is expected to become a major political issue with local body polls due across the state later this year, with opposition parties arguing that it was a backdoor entry of the compulsory-Hindi policy.
Leading the charge against the government’s order was the Mahayuti alliance’s ally just months ago—Raj Thackeray. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief appealed to state schools not to implement the order, saying that “imposing Hindi would be treated as an anti-Maharashtra activity”. He also said he would send letters to school principals asking them to oppose the decision, before slipping in a veiled threat.
“I would be thankful if they oppose the decision. But if they help the government by enforcing Hindi, then it will be treated as anti-Maharashtra activity. Our party workers will then visit them to have a discussion on the same,” Thackeray said at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
He then accused north Indians of wanting to capture Maharashtra by enforcing Hindi in schools. “I will see how Hindi will be enforced from Class 1. If the government thinks of this as a challenge, let them,” he added.
Thackeray also claimed that textbooks were already being printed to enforce Hindi from Class 1. “If Hindi is not being enforced in neighbouring Gujarat, then why is it being enforced in Maharashtra from Class 1? Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah are from Gujarat, and Hindi was not enforced in Gujarat,” he said, adding that Hindi is the language of some states and not of the entire country.
Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal said the new directive was “a facade of choice” and a “well-planned imposition of Hindi”. He also attacked Fadnavis for earlier claiming that the state government had cancelled its April order making Hindi mandatory from class 1, saying the public has been deceived.
“What does the [new] government resolution actually say? Hindi will remain the compulsory third language; if any other language is to be learned, there must be a minimum of 20 students, which means this is just a facade of choice — a well-planned imposition of Hindi,” he said.
Sapkal also alleged that the BJP is conspiring to implement an anti-Maharashtra agenda, to erase the Marathi language, its identity, and people. “This clearly shows that Fadnavis, Eknath Shinde, and Ajit Pawar’s loyalty lies not with Maharashtra or the Marathi people, but with their Delhi lords,” he said, in an apparent reference to Modi and Shah.
The Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) also objected to the new order. “I am of the opinion that things should not be imposed forcibly,” said NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule. Why is the government forcing it? Let the parents decide what language their children should learn. The central government should not force their decision on any of the states.”
Responding to the criticism, Fadnavis clarified that the compulsion of learning Hindi had been removed in the new order. “We had made Hindi mandatory in the past, but it was removed by issuing a fresh order [on Tuesday]. Now, we have said that the student can learn any third Indian language,” Fadnavis told reporters.
The chief minister added that the new GR was issued in consonance with the National Education Policy (NEP), which promotes learning three languages. At least two of these languages must be native to India, including the regional language of the state.
“A student can learn any Indian language as a third language,” said Fadnavis. “I also want to ask: if English is being accepted, then why is there opposition to Indian languages?”
Reacting particularly to Thackeray’s comments, Fadnavis said, “Raj Thackeray spoke with me. He said there should be only two compulsory languages for students. The Centre has introduced the three-language policy after extensive research. Tamil Nadu went to court against the same, but the court did not accept its argument. What is wrong if children learn a third language?”
To be sure, the Supreme Court has supported Tamil Nadu’s autonomy to reject the three-language policy. On May 9, the apex court dismissed a public interest litigation filed by BJP leader GS Mani, which sought to enforce the three-language policy in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and West Bengal. The court said that no state can be forced to adopt the NEP, emphasising that education is a state subject under the Constitution.