MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday alleged the BJP is trying to create a divide among people based on language and accused the ruling party of imposing a 'language emergency' in Maharashtra.
Talking to reporters here, the former Maharashtra chief minister insisted his party, a former BJP ally, was not opposed to Hindi, but asserted it was certainly against the language's imposition in the predominantly Marathi-speaking state.
"We don't oppose or hate any language, but that doesn't mean we will allow imposition of any language," he emphasised amid the ongoing controversy over teaching Hindi to students of Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools.
"The BJP is trying to create a divide among people based on language," he claimed.
He alleged the BJP's hidden agenda was to impose Hindi.
"The ruling party is imposing a language emergency," the former CM claimed.