MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday asserted that his party will not allow making Hindi compulsory in Maharashtra after the state government decided to make Hindi a mandatory third language for students of classes 1 to 5.
Addressing an event of the Bharatiya Kamgar Sena, the workers' wing of the Shiv Sena (UBT), Thackeray said his party has no aversion to the Hindi language but asked why it is being forced.
His remarks come amid the opposition's outcry over the Maharashtra government's decision to make Hindi a mandatory third language for students of Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English-medium schools across the state, in a departure from the practice of studying two languages.
The move is in line with the National Education Policy (NEP), which is being implemented in a phased manner across the state.
As per the GR, the revised NEP syllabus will be introduced for Class 1 in 2025–26. For Classes 2, 3, 4, and 6, the implementation will follow in 2026–27, for Classes 5, 9, and 11 in 2027–28, and for Classes 8, 10, and 12 in 2028–29.
The three-language formula is already in place in all schools in the state, except for Marathi and English medium institutions. For these, the language of instruction, English, and Marathi will continue to be taught, the GR said. From Classes 6 to 10, the language policy will align with the state curriculum.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the state has already adopted the NEP. "Marathi has already been made compulsory. Hindi should also be learnt as it is a means of communication across the entire country," he added.
Earlier on Thursday, MNS chief Raj Thackeray had strongly opposed the Maharashtra government’s decision, calling it an attempt to “Hindi-fy” the state and undermine its linguistic identity. In a sharply worded statement, Thackeray said Hindi is not a national language and questioned why it was being imposed on Maharashtra, while warning of a political agenda behind the move. He asserted, “We are Hindus but not Hindi."
The MNS leader also accused the government of using the language issue to divert attention from real concerns like unemployment, agrarian distress, and the state’s economic slowdown. He vowed to block the distribution of Hindi textbooks in schools and urged citizens, the Marathi media, and political parties to stand united in opposing the policy.
NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule on Saturday voiced strong opposition to the Maharashtra government's decision to make Hindi a mandatory third language, warning that any move undermining Marathi would not be tolerated. Speaking in Pune, Sule said parents should have the right to choose additional languages and emphasised that Marathi, the state's mother tongue, must remain the priority. She also questioned the rush to implement NEP without proper infrastructure or teacher training and cited the ASER report to highlight existing learning gaps in core subjects.
Sule criticised the idea of replacing the state board with CBSE and called for a focus on strengthening basic education first. Sule said the state’s governance under the current regime has shown little progress in the last 100 days, despite enjoying a strong mandate.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has defended the Maharashtra government’s move, he criticised opposition parties for creating “unnecessary disputes” over the issue. Speaking at the inauguration of a memorial for the Chapekar Brothers, Pawar said Marathi will always be the first preference in the state, while stressing that English and Hindi are widely used and important for communication across India. He dismissed the political backlash—especially from MNS chief Raj Thackeray and the Congress—as a distraction from real issues.
Pawar underscored that Marathi’s status remains secure and pointed to the Centre’s recognition of Marathi as a classical language under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership. He also mentioned upcoming plans to establish a Marathi Bhasha Bhavan in Mumbai to further promote the language. The implementation of Hindi as a third language is part of the state’s phased rollout of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
(With inputs from PTI)