Marathi is a sweet language, Marathis are such sweet people, so why do some of you trouble Biharis?
Marathi is a sweet language, Marathis are such sweet people, so why do some of you trouble Biharis?
This query was raised by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar at a mammoth rally in Mumbai on Sunday, which was billed as a cultural event to celebrate 100 years of the formation of Bihar. But Kumar’s message was clearly political, a reference to the MNS leader Raj Thackeray opposing the event and backing down in the face of tremendous pressure.
Wherever Biharis went and settled down, Kumar said, they made that land their own. He said the Bihari worked hard for his daily bread and did not chreat or tell lies to go ahead in life.
“All of us have contributed to making Mumbai the country’s financial capital and we all are proud of that fact,” he said.
He stressed that people in India were free to travel and settle anywhere, which was decided by Dr BR Ambedkar when he wrote the Constitution. “Let us spread the message of love and brotherhood so that we can make India a superpower,” he added to thunderous applause.
The Bihar CM pointed out that Biharis migrated for opportunities but said that the state has made much progress in the last 7 years and migration had stopped.
He urged the Biharis to work hard and live in peace and harmony with his neighbours and to be proud of the progress his home state (Bihar) has made in recent time.
Earlier, the Bihar MLC Devesh Chandra Thakur, who organised the event, thanked the Marathi people and the media for the support they had given the event, in a clear reference to the diatribe by MNS leader Raj Thackeray.
The impressive rally saw an attendance of nearly 1 lakh people and began with a series of cultural programmes.
After Nitish Kumar arrived on the stage, he first lit a lamp, and then garlanded a bust of Shivaji and portraits of Babasaheb Ambedkar and Mahatma Phule. The Maharashtra geet, Garja Maharashtra Maaza was sung followed by the well known playback singer Udit Narayan, who is Bihari origin, singing two songs and speaking in Maithili to the crowds’ delight.
Kumar spoke in Marathi at the beginning of his speech, saying he salutes this land of Maharashtra that has produced saints and reformers. He ended also in Marathi, thanking Mumbai and Maharashtra and proclaiming: “Jai Bihar, Jai Maharashtra, Jai Hind!”
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