Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 24 : Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Nirupam on Friday said that there was no problem with the agenda to promote Marathi within Maharashtra, but discouraged threats to cancel permits of auto and rickshaw drivers who don't know the regional language.
"It is Maharashtra's agenda that the Marathi language should be promoted within the state. We do not have any problem with the basic agenda, but our stand is against the threats of permit cancellations for auto and rickshaw drivers who do not know how to speak the language," Nirupam told ANI.
He voices that they should at least be given a chance to learn the language, saying, "At least let them learn -- this is what we have asked the government."
This comes after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Amit Thackeray on Thursday warned rickshaw drivers against "laying hands" on Marathi-speaking rickshaw drivers under the guise of striking against the imposition of Marathi.
"Those rickshaw drivers who are thinking of going on strike against the imposition of the Marathi language should go ahead and strike freely. But if they obstruct Marathi rickshaw drivers or lay hands on them under the guise of the strike, they will be given a fitting reply right there on the street," the MNS leader told reporters.
Addressing reporters, MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande also said that the party will "teach them a lesson" if people refuse to learn Marathi.
Deshpande said, "If you are staying in Maharashtra, if you are staying in Karnataka, if you are staying in Tamil Nadu, if you are staying in Gujarat, you have to respect the local language. And it is expected that when you are doing business in these states, you are expected to learn the local language. If you are showing an attitude, saying that we will not learn our language, do whatever you want, we will teach them a lesson, and the lesson will be in Marathi."
MNS workers, in the past, have resorted to violence against non-Marathi-speaking individuals. The party workers have invited criticism and arrests for allegedly beating up shopkeepers in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) for not speaking in Marathi.
Meanwhile, the State Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik had announced that the Marathi language will be mandatory for driving rickshaws in the state, with checking of documents and language skills from May 1.