In the past few decades a very high degree of linguistic sentiment and pride has been witnessed, mainly in the states in the southern part of the country. We have seen in the past how people in the southern states of India came out on the streets and protested over the language issue and how the state politics were driven by it, but now this phenomenon is being witnessed in Maharashtra too. Some media brands call it a "language war". One is not sure if this phenomenon should be called a "war" as of now. But it is clear that what we are witnessing is some serious level of conflict or strife between communities divided along linguistic lines.

The trigger for all this was the Maharashtra government's resolution to bring in Hindi as a compulsory subject to be taught in schools from the first grade. This was red-flagged by Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, or MNS, and that triggered a controversy which has now spilt onto the streets of Mumbai suburban areas, such as Mira-Bhayander, where a large number of migrants from the northern parts of the country live. Now questions are being asked whether all this is carefully orchestrated with an eye on the upcoming civic polls happening in Mumbai, Thane,........

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