Investor Sushil Kedia issues apology after office attacked, calls Raj Thackeray ‘hero’

Prominent investor Sushil Kedia on Saturday issued a public apology for his critical remarks on the Marathi language and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray.

Kedia’s apology came hours after a group of MNS activists attacked and vandalised his Mumbai office.

“Having come under pressure mentally from the violence inflicted on those who do not know Marathi, I ended up overreacting, I realized I must take back my overreactions and withdraw,” the investor said in a post on X.

Kedia said he had always had a deep sense of appreciation and gratitude to Raj Thackeray for the strong issues he raised and for the strength with which he stood up for issues concerning the people.

“He's always been a hero, but this time when our own people have been at loggerheads with each other, my mind went haywire," Kedia said.

In a controversial post on Friday, the investor had said he would not learn Marathi as a protest against the "gross misconduct" of Raj Thackeray. 

“I don't know Marathi properly even after living for 30 years in Mumbai, and with your gross misconduct I have made it a resolve that until such people as you are allowed to pretend to be taking care of Marathi Manus, I take pratigya I won't learn Marathi. Kya karna hai bol?,”  Kedia had said in a social media post on Friday.

The investor’s remark was in response to a recent incident in Mira Road where a sweet mart owner was allegedly assaulted by a group of MNS workers for not speaking in Marathi. The incident triggered protests in the area with hundreds of shopkeepers and traders taking to the streets on Thursday.

Kedia’s remarks targeting Raj Thackeray, however, drew a sharp reaction from the MNS with party leader Sandeep Deshpande warning him against “insulting” Marathi.

“Do business if you're a businessman; don't try to act like our father. If you insult Marathi in Maharashtra, you'll get a slap on the ear, otherwise, stay in your lane, Mehta or whoever. That's all for now,” Deshpande said.

Later in the day, Kedia sought police protection, saying he was getting threats for challenging Raj Thackeray.

“Shri Raj Thackeray, threatening me by 100s of your workers is not going to make me a fluent Marathi speaker. If I am not confident of the quality of Marathi I can speak, with so much threatening around even more fear happens that if I miss speaking any word(s) improperly more violence will happen. Get the point. Love, not threat makes people get assimilated together,” he said in a post in which he also tagged the Mumbai Police and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

On Saturday, a group of MNS workers reached Kedia’s office at Century Bazar in the morning and vandalised its doors and windows.

Interestingly, the latest incident came at a time when cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray are set to address a joint rally in Mumbai—for the first time after nearly 20 years—to mark their victory against the Maharashtra government's move to make Hindi compulsory in schools. 

It is being keenly looked at whether the reunion of Thackerays will set a new course in Maratha politics.