2 days ago
Bandh to protest attack on trader who could not speak in Marathi
Mira-Bhayander: A shopkeeper's assault by
MNS
workers for not speaking Marathi led to a 'bandh' by Mira Road-Bhayander traders who demanded the arrest of the assaulters. An FIR was filed, but no arrests have been made as charges invoked are minor.
This has prompted calls for invoking the IT Act as the assaulters made a video of the attack and circulated it.
Traders observed a day's bandh on Thursday demanding the arrest of the men who attacked the sweet shop owner on Tuesday for not speaking in Marathi. An FIR was filed against seven individuals at Kashimira police station. However, only notices were sent; no arrest took place.
The bandh was called by traders of all communities.
Kamla Chaudhary, a pharmacist, speaking in fluent Marathi, said, "I have been operating a pharmacy in Mira Bhayander for over a decade now. Such harassment will have a negative impact." One of the traders at a protest questioned why such acts took place though the BJP was running the govt: "If they are in power in the State and the Centre, then why are we not safe," he said.
Another protestor, Meena Agarwal, said, "I am 60yrs old now and have been speaking our mother tongue all these years and it is not possible for me to learn this language.
by Taboola
by Taboola
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Our next generation is studying and speaking in Marathi. Harassing someone for not speaking in Marathi language is wrong."
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Avinash Jadhav of the MNS said the bandh was organised by the BJP.
Minister of state for home Yogesh Kadam sought to balance linguistic chauvinism with condemnation of the vigilantes. Kadam said, "In Maharashtra, you have to speak Marathi. If you don't know Marathi, your attitude shouldn't be that you won't speak Marathi...
If anyone disrespects Marathi here, we will enforce our laws.'' At the same time, he said those who beat up (the shop owner) should not take the law into their own hands.
"They should have filed a complaint against the concerned person; action would have been taken." Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray said, "We want that our mother tongue Marathi is not insulted and no language is forcefully imposed... We don't want anybody to take the law into their hands, but when it is the other way round and Marathi or Maharashtra is insulted, things can escalate."
In the FIR, shop owner Babulal Khimji Chaudhary said his employee was threatened and abused when he replied in Hindi to some people who came to his shop asking for water. Later they beat up Chaudary, the complaint said.
