By Admin 
The language dispute has once again taken a fierce form in Maharashtra. This time the case is in Palghar district where a migrant auto-rickshaw driver at Virar station was publicly beaten by Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers and forced him to forcibly apologize.
The incident came out after a video went viral, in which the driver insisted on talking in Hindi and said, “I will speak Hindi.” Angry activists beat him up, considering this statement an insult to Marathi language and cultural symbols.
Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS supporters surrounded
It is being told that the dispute started a few days ago when a person from Uttar Pradesh, Bhavesh Padolia, and the said driver had a debate about not talking in Marathi. In the viral video, the driver was seen answering in Bhojpuri and Hindi, which many local organizations considered an insult to Marathi Asmita.
According to the news channel NDTV, on Saturday (July 12), supporters of Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS surrounded the driver near Virar railway station. Many people, including the women present there, slapped her and publicly apologized.
Shiv Sena will get answers in style- Shiv Sena UBT
Confirming the incident, Virar city head of Shiv Sena (UBT), Uday Jadhav, said, “If someone insults Marathi language, Maharashtra or Marathi manush, he will get a reply in Shiv Sena style. We have taught him a lesson by apologizing to that auto driver.” Jadhav also claimed that the auto driver had made derogatory remarks about Maharashtra and Marathi, which could not be tolerated in any form.
No police complaint has been filed on this incident yet. The Palghar police say that viral video is being watched and the facts are being investigated, but no formal complaint has been received from any side yet.
Significantly, this incident is a recent case of increasing tension over language dispute in the state. Earlier on 1 July, a street food vendor in Thane was beaten by MNS workers for not talking in Marathi. Even after this, many organizations had protested. Now this issue is not only increasing social stress, but is also becoming a center of political debate regarding education policy and linguistic identity.