NEW DELHI: A day after rolling back the decision to implement the three-language policy in Maharashtra amid opposition’s “morcha” threat, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday snubbed Uddhav Thackeray, calling him “palturam”.While addressing the media, Fadnavis said that the BJP-led government was not against Hindi or any other language of the nation.“We are not against the Hindi language. We are not against any language of the nation. When they (Uddhav Thackeray) were in power, they had made teaching of Hindi mandatory, which the Raghunath Mashelkar Committee recommended,” Fadnavis said.“Palturam is the correct name for him (Uddhav Thackeray),” he added.On Sunday, the Maharashtra government withdrew two orders on the implementation of the three-language policy in Classes 1 to 5 in state schools.The government also announced the formation of a committee under educationist Dr Narendra Jadhav to suggest the way forward and implementation of the language policy.The panel has been given three months to study the issue and prepare a report.The Fadnavis government had issued a GR on April 16, making Hindi a compulsory third language for students in classes 1 to 5 studying in English and Marathi medium schools. Amid backlash, the government issued an amended GR on June 17, making Hindi an optional language.Meanwhile, Uddhav claimed that the attempt made by the Mahayuti government to “impose Hindi” on “Marathi Manoos” has been defeated.While addressing a press conference, Uddhav said that the Fadnavis government attempted to break the unity of the Marathi manoos and create a divide between Marathis and non-Marathis.“The decision to impose Hindi under the guise of a three-language policy from Class 1 has finally been withdrawn. The government has cancelled the two GRs (Government Resolutions) related to this. This cannot be called wisdom that came late, because this imposition was withdrawn solely due to the strong resistance from the Marathi people. Why the government was so insistent on pushing Hindi and from where exactly this pressure was coming still remains a mystery,” Uddhav said.
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