Mumbai, Maharashtra, October 4: Shiv Sena UBT leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Union Cabinet approved granting classical language status to Marathi and other languages.
The Union Cabinet, on Thursday, approved this status for Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, and Bengali.
Sanjay Raut remarked, "It is a great honor that Marathi has been recognized as a classical language. Five languages have received this distinction: Bengali, Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, and Assamese. For many years, there has been a demand for Marathi to receive this recognition. Leaders from almost all political parties in the state, including every Chief Minister and state government for the last 30-35 years, have pushed for this. If it has finally happened, it is due to the collective efforts of everyone, not just one individual... The BJP has a habit of claiming credit for everything."
He continued, "This is a moment of joy. This recognition will aid the development of the Marathi language across the country. Nothing can stop the growth of Marathi, which is the language of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj."
He further stated, "The Prime Minister, Home Minister, or Minister of Culture have always been part of our delegation. So if this has happened today, it is the contribution of all, not of one party or one person. The BJP can claim credit, and so be it."
A Linguistic Experts Committee (LEC) was set up by the Ministry of Culture under Sahitya Akademi in November 2004 to review languages proposed for classical status. The criteria were revised in November 2005, with Sanskrit being subsequently declared a classical language. The Government of India has already granted classical language status to Tamil (2004), Sanskrit (2005), Telugu (2008), Kannada (2008), Malayalam (2013), and Odia (2014).
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