New Delhi [India], July 18 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey on Friday lambasted incidents of violence against Hindi speakers in Maharashtra after the Mahayuti government's move on three-language policy which was later withdrawn.
In an interview with ANI, Nishikant Dubey said India is diverse and all its people have a strong affection for their region.
The four-time MP also said people have a right to move from one part of the country to the other.
"I am saying this again, I stand by my statements. This nation is diverse, and all its people have a strong affection for their region...If Maharashtra is a part of this country, then anyone can be settled anywhere in this country...But they beat up those who are Hindi language speakers...Even today, only 31-32% Marathi speakers live in Mumbai...I accept that Maharashtra has a huge contribution to the economy, I have huge respect for Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj," he said.
He was asked about his controversial "patak, patak ke maarenge" remarks.
"I am proud that my mother tongue is Hindi. Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray are not big laat sahabs . I am an MP, do not take law in my hands. Whenever they go out, whichever state they go, the people of that place will beat them..." he said.
"If you beat up the poor, they will react one day. It is not only Hindi speakers. They protested against Gujaratis in 1956, then against South Indians, and now they are doing it against Hindi speakers. Their history is such that everyone is angry at them....Unka security vapis leljiye, agar ghar se bahar nikal jaye to main samajh jaun bahut bade sher hai (Take away their security, they will not leave their residence)," he added.
Taking a dig, those resorting to violence can stand outside the headquarters of prominent institutions, such as the State Bank of India (SBI) and LIC, and ask them to leave Maharashtra, as their top officials don't converse in Marathi.
The BJP MP said that just as people from the South are proud of their languages, people from the northern and eastern regions are also proud of their mother tongue, which is Hindi.
"This is a country of languages. There is unity in diversity. All are fond of their regions. Nobody can question the rich history and existence of the Marathi language. I respect Marathi and Marathas...Anyone can settle anywhere in this country. Be it Rajasthani, Kannada, Telugu or Tamil - just like they love their language, we love Hindi. You don't have a problem with teaching English, which is the language of the British," Dubey said.
"Bombay was part of Gujarat. It was not part of Maharashtra until 1956, when the division occurred based on language. However, only 31 to 32 per cent of Marathi speakers live in Mumbai. An equal percentage of people who speak Hindi live there. Two per cent of people speak Bhojpuri in Mumbai. Twelve per cent are Gujarati speakers," he added.
The Maharashtra Government had revoked the government resolutions (GRs) on the three-language policy, introducing Hindi as the third language in primary schools. The government has decided to set up a committee to take a relook into the three-language policy.
Fadnavis announced that the government resolutions (GRs) issued in April regarding the three-language policy in primary schools have been cancelled. The first GR had made Hindi a compulsory third language for students from Classes 1 to 5 and the second GR made it optional.
Uddhav and Raj Thackeray had held a joint 'victory rally' to celebrate the state government withdrawing its move.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut later clarified that their party is not against the Hindi language, but opposes making it mandatory in primary schooling.
"The Southern states have been fighting for this issue for years. Their stand against the imposition of Hindi means they will not speak Hindi and neither let anyone speak Hindi. But that is not our stand in Maharashtra. We speak Hindi... Our stand is that the strictness for Hindi in primary schools will not be tolerated. Our fight is limited to this," he said.
Fadnavis had also clarified on Nishikant Dubey's "patak, patak ke marenge" had sparked a row in Maharashtra.
He said that the remarks were not aimed at the Marathi community but at certain organisations that, according to Dubey, triggered the controversy.
"Whatever Nishikant Dubey has said, he has not said it for the common Marathi people, but for those organisations which have fuelled this controversy," said Fadnavis.
However, the Chief Minister also distanced himself from the content of Dubey's remarks. "I believe that Nishikant Dubey's statement was not completely correct."
"No one can deny or forget the contribution of Maharashtra in the progress of the country, and if someone does so, it would be completely wrong," he added.
Dubey, who is MP from Godda, had made the remarks over some purported comments of MNS chief Raj Thackeray.
"What are you doing, whose bread are you eating? You people are surviving on our money. What kind of industries do you have? We have all the mines in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha. What mines do you have? All semiconductor refineries are in Gujarat. If you have the courage to beat Hindi speakers, then beat those who speak Urdu, Tamil, and Telugu too. If you're such a 'boss', come out of Maharashtra--come to Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu. 'Tumko patak patak ke maarenge'...," Dubey had said.
"We all respect Marathi and the people of Maharashtra, who fought for India's independence. We respect all the freedom fighters -- Chhatrapati Shivaji, Tatya Tope, Lala Lajpat Rai, Gopal Krishna Gokhale -- Maharashtra has contributed a lot to our freedom and independence," he added.
Sanjay Raut, in his Saamana article on July 13, stated that the Thackeray brothers, who joined hands on the Marathi issue, must also come together politically to fight the "commercial Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)".
He asserted that the alliance between Uddhav and Raj Thackeray was "necessary" for Maharashtra to get a new direction."
"The current rulers of Delhi and Maharashtra are shaken by the way the storm of Marathi unity has been created in Maharashtra. They will try to prevent this alliance from happening," the article read.