Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers have been booked for allegedly blackening signs of ‘Mutual Funds Sahi Hai’ at Andheri Metro Station and damaging billboards, while protesting against the use of Hindi advertisements in the city.
Two MNS workers, identified as Ramesh Kharpe and Ravindra Indorkar, have been booked under Section 72 of the Maharashtra Police Act (defacing public notices), Section 3 of the Metro Railways (Operation and Maintenance) Act, and Section 324 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (mischief). Notices have been issued to both.
The protest was aimed at asserting Marathi’s primacy as the state language. “Only Marathi advertisements should be allowed. We will not tolerate Hindi promotions in Maharashtra,” the activists declared, warning of more aggressive protests if Hindi ads resurface at metro stations.
The incident has once again pushed the language debate in Mumbai to the forefront, with the MNS reiterating its stance that Marathi must remain central in all public and commercial spaces across the state.
In August, MNS workers had allegedly vandalised a bar in Panvel, hours after a fiery speech by party president Raj Thackeray condemning the functioning of dance bars in what he described as the “sacred land” of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Raigad.
