Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut welcomed the Centre's decision to grant classical language status to Marathi, emphasizing it was a result of collective efforts over many years and not due to a single party or leader.
Sanjay Raut said, ‘Every political leader and chief minister in the last 30 to 35 years worked to get the classical language status for Marathi. It is a great honour. It is due to collective contribution and not because of a single party or any leader.’
Criticizing the BJP, Raut said that if the BJP-led Union government aimed to please voters with this decision, such ‘alms’ were unnecessary, as Marathi is already a significant language. Raut also said that political parties had been raising the issue in Parliament for many years. He suggested that while the BJP has recognized Marathi on paper, they should also focus on preventing industries from moving out of Maharashtra.
Ahead of the state assembly elections, the demand for classical language status to Marathi gained political momentum. Earlier this year, the Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra had formed a committee led by former diplomat Dnyaneshwar Muley to address this issue.
The Central government has granted classical language status to Marathi, along with Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, and Bengali.