The BJP-led government in Maharashtra on Sunday withdrew its decision to introduce Hindi as the default third language in primary school, days ahead of a united protest planned by estranged cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray against “Hindi imposition”.
Announcing the rollback, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said an expert committee would be formed to suggest how to implement the Centre's three-language formula in the state. The Centre’s New Education Policy recommends that students learn three languages, including at least two Indian languages.
“The government will wait for the report of the committee to decide from which class the three-language formula should be implemented,” Fadnavis announced after a cabinet meeting. He said the expert committee would be led by educationist and former Rajya Sabha member Narendra Jadhav.
The Opposition, led by the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, had announced a protest march and a rally on July 5 against the BJP-led government’s attempts to “impose Hindi” on the state, terming it an assault on Marathi pride. The Sena (UBT) on Sunday burned copies of the government resolution across the state as a prelude to the July 5 march.
Raj Thackeray, who heads the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), had said he would join hands with Uddhav after two decades to oppose “Hindi oppression” on Marathi pride.
NCP (Sharad Pawar) MP Supriya Sule had on Saturday announced that her party would join the protest, while the Congress said it would continue its agitation until the policy had been withdrawn. Several pro-Marathi outfits too demanded the withdrawal of the government decision.
Apparently unnerved by the widespread protests, Fadnavis rushed the rollback.
“For us, Marathi is at the centre of our policy. Our language policy will always be Marathi-centric,” Fadnavis said, flanked by his two deputies, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.
“The chief minister is against the Marathi language. Why doesn’t he talk about other issues? Why is he fixated only on Marathi?” Uddhav told reporters after the rollback announcement.
Fadnavis was forced on the back foot also by his two Mahayuti allies, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit-helmed NCP.
Ajit had on Saturday told reporters he was against making Hindi mandatory in Classes I to V. “After Class V, students and parents should be allowed to decide which third language they want to take,” he had said.
The Fadnavis government had initially, through an April 16 resolution, made Hindi a “mandatory” third language in primary school, stressing the need to learn the language for better job opportunities outside the state.
As protests intensified, the government issued a fresh resolution on June 17 saying primary-class students could learn Hindi as a “general” (non-compulsory) third language or any other Indian language.
The order said schools could offer an alternative to Hindi if at least 20 students in a class opted for it. In such instances, a teacher for that language would be appointed. If not, the language would be taught online.
Fadnavis had hoped that the removal of the “mandatory” clause would end the protests. The Opposition and other pro-Marathi groups, however, saw it as a move to impose Hindi through the “backdoor”.
The Opposition wants the government to stick to the existing two-language formula of Marathi and English in primary school and introduce the option of learning a third language after Class V.