Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], July 5 : Five workers of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) have been detained in connection with the vandalism at entrepreneur Sushil Kedia's office in Worli, police said on Saturday.
Entrepreneur Kedia, who found himself in the midst of the language row in Maharashtra over his recent remarks against MNS and its chief Raj Thackeray, stated that he made these comments in haste and has now realised his mistake.
Stressing that his comments have been taken out of context by some sections, Kedia said, "My tweet happened in a wrong state of mind under stress. And further, now it is getting manipulated and misinterpreted to suit the interests of people who want to gain from any controversy."
https://x.com/sushilkedia/status/1941382618077175812
Kedia said that he made those comments after common citizens of Maharashtra were getting targeted over a lack of proficiency in Marathi.
"Having come under pressure mentally from the violence inflicted on those who do not know Marathi, I ended up overreacting. I realised I must take back my overreactions and withdraw," he said.
Praising MNS chief Raj Thackeray for raising "strong issues" that matter to the Hindus, Thackeray said, "Whether it was the Hanuman Chalisa campaign in recent memories or always, the championing of Hindutva and Rashtravad that he has done, he has always been a hero. But this time, when our own have been loggerheads with each other, my mind went haywire under stress."
He further said that citizens here in Maharashtra will be inclined to learn the Marathi language if encouraged in the right manner.
"I have realised my mistake, and I wish to correct it unequivocally. The concerned people may also hopefully consider someday soon that instead of frightening people if you provide us encouragement, it will help us overcome our hesitations in achieving fluency in the Marathi language more rapidly, as we will be fearlessly using it more and more. Of course, the tweet that I made out of haste, out of the stress," Kedia said while admitting that he clearly "overreacted" in his previous tweet.
https://x.com/sushilkedia/status/1940763076007285167
Meanwhile, Union Minister Chirag Paswan condemned the assault on a shopkeeper in Thane for not speaking in Marathi.
Speaking to reporters in Vaishali on Friday, Bihar, Paswan said, "It is beyond my understanding how many divisions will be created among Indians -- sometimes in the name of region, sometimes language, religion, or caste. While advocating for pride in one's mother tongue, the minister urged for sensitivity and mutual respect."
Earlier on Friday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis warned of strict legal action against those engaging in "hooliganism" in the name of Marathi. He stated that the Mahayuti government will not tolerate violence against common people.