Prayagraj, Jul 9 (PTI) Union Minister Ramdas Athawale on Wednesday criticised incidents of assault on people allegedly for not speaking in Marathi and claimed that Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray have "joined hands" in view of the upcoming civic polls in Maharashtra.
"The cousins are trying to consolidate Marathi votes. A large portion of Marathi voters has already aligned with the Mahayuti alliance after Eknath Shinde and 40 MLAs joined it," the Republican Party of India (RPI) chief told reporters here.
A few days earlier, MNS chief Raj Thackeray shared the stage with his cousin Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai at a victory gathering titled 'Awaj Marathicha' to celebrate the rollback of two government resolutions (GRs) issued by the Devendra Fadnavis-led dispensation, introducing Hindi as a third language from Class 1 in Maharashtra schools.
The coming together of the estranged cousins has not only enthused cadres of both parties, but it could also give a lifeline to both MNS and Shiv Sena (UBT), which are struggling to regain their footing after drubbings in the assembly polls last year.
Reacting to the developments, Athawale said Mumbai's development as the economic capital owes much to non-Marathi individuals.
"From Tata, Birla, Mafatlal, Mahindra to Adani and Ambani, many of them are not Marathi speaking. For over a century, people from across the country have settled in Mumbai," he said.
He condemned instances of hooliganism over language, saying, "Slapping someone for not speaking Marathi is unconstitutional. Mumbai does not belong to any one group; it belongs to the entire nation."
Addressing the Samvidhan Samman Sammelan at Prayag Sangeet Samiti, Athawale recalled his party's past strength in Uttar Pradesh, saying it once held four ministerial positions in the Charan Singh government. "The elephant was our election symbol then; now it is with Mayawati," he said.
He urged BSP workers to look toward the RPI, saying, "You've seen 'behenji' so far, now give 'bhai' a chance. Those leaving BSP should join us to fulfil Babasaheb Ambedkar's dream."