At Marathi event, PM Modi says 'no animosity among languages'; Sharad Pawar mentions Ram Temple

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there has never been "any animosity among Indian languages" and each language has always enriched the other. He said that efforts were often made to create divisions based on languages but India's shared linguistic heritage is a testimony that such discriminations do not exist.

Modi's remarks came on a day when Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin reiterated his remarks that the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) is an attempt to impose a 3-language formula throughout the country.

"It is our social responsibility to distance ourselves from these misconceptions and embrace and enrich all languages," the prime minister said.


He made these remarks at the inauguration of the 98th Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sammelan where he shared the stage with NCP-SCP supremo Sharad Pawar, an occasion when a rare camaraderie was witnessed as Modi went all out to make Pawar comfortable. The fact that the PM talked about RSS, and that Pawar mentioned the Ram Temple ignited further interest.

Perhaps after a very long time, Modi talked about RSS at a public programme. "It is a matter of pride that in the great land of Maharashtra, a remarkable Marathi-speaking individual planted the seeds of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh 100 years ago. Today, we celebrate its centenary. The organisation has grown and flourished like a banyan tree," Modi said.

Sangh has been running a Sanskar Yagya to take India's great tradition and culture to the new generation and inspired lakhs of people like him to live for the country and because of RSS he got connected with the Marathi language and Marathi traditions, Modi added.

Later, while addressing the gathering here, Pawar mentioned about the Ram temple inauguration in Ayodhya saying that the Geet Ramayan written in Marathi by GD Madgulkar, sung by Sudhir Phadke, has become hugely popular.

Though on different sides of the political spectrum, the bonhomie between the two leaders was on full display when the PM went out of the way to help a frail Sharad Pawar sit in his chair and poured out a glass of water for the NCP-SCP veteran.