Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Ashish Shelar on Sunday sparked a political storm by comparing the recent attacks on Hindi-speaking people in Mumbai with the Pahalgam terror incident, taking a veiled swipe at the newly reunited Thackeray cousins.
Shelar’s comments came as outrage grew over Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) activists thrashing a sweet shop owner in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region for refusing to speak Marathi. The controversy escalated further after MNS workers vandalized the office of investor Sushil Kedia in Worli, following his public refusal to speak Marathi and challenge to Raj Thackeray.
“As terrorists in Pahalgam asked people their religion before shooting, here people are attacked over the language they speak. It’s deeply disappointing. The state is watching as leaders revel in the beating of other Hindus,” Shelar told reporters.
With MNS launching street-level aggression to enforce Marathi, Bhojpuri actor and BJP MP Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahua’ openly dared the Thackeray cousins to evict him from Maharashtra for speaking his native language. “I speak Bhojpuri, not Marathi. I challenge you to drive me out if you can,” he said.
The row erupted after Uddhav and Raj Thackeray shared a stage for the first time in nearly 20 years, celebrating the rollback of government resolutions introducing Hindi as a third language in primary schools. The Thackeray cousins vowed to resist the “imposition” of Hindi in Maharashtra.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut claimed the Thackeray reunion had rattled ruling Mahayuti leaders, while mocking Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis’s “rudali speech” jibe by suggesting Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde should prepare for their own “weeping programme.”
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MLA and minister Pratap Sarnaik credited Deputy CM Shinde for championing Marathi causes and accused the Thackeray cousins of exploiting Marathi identity for power. In a letter to Shinde, Sarnaik argued that the Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS alliance was solely aimed at capturing the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) rather than protecting Marathi interests.
Sarnaik pointed out that during the Sena’s 25-year control of the BMC, the Marathi community was driven out of key industries like hotels, real estate, and jewellery. He said the Thackerays’ sudden unity betrayed selfish political motives, adding, “People know their politics is fake and treacherous.”
Shelar concluded by asserting that Marathi identity should not be politicized and predicted heavy losses for the Shiv Sena (UBT) and its allies in the upcoming civic elections.
