It’s your claim that the people are unjustly feeling cynical and are prejudiced in thinking that Marathi is under siege as you explain in one comment here:

What this post actually emphasises is our thought that we are the aggrieved and others are guilty. It also points out that often we believe others are being cynically exploited even as we are unaware of us being victims of the same cynicism, craftiness and prejudices.

This is YOUR hypothesis that it’s a delusion. You need to prove that this is just delusion and not a real thing.

I have never believed actions such as speaking in a different language is an attack/invasion etc. That to me is the very first example of the aggrieved / guilty syndrome. That we are cynically exploited is a statement based on what I see happening in various states in India. I could drag references, observations into this but that simply takes the focus of this away from the essential topic – India first. So no thank you for the request for “proof”, but I have stated what I wanted to – you have the freedom to choose to not believe it if that is not consistent with your observations.

I have been careful enough to not make this a Marathi vs Non marathi post. Suggest you don’t unnecessarily drag me into it. Thats not to say I don’t have strong feelings about it. Its to say my feelings extend equally strongly to where Indians discriminate against each other if and whichever side of fence Marathi happens to be in that particular incident.

With regards to the remainder of your thoughts on Tamil, Bengali etc., my philosophy remains consistent. India First. My beliefs are not a function of how others behave – they are a function of how I think I should behave and that still remains India first.

And finally on your thoughts about India. I believe India will do what it has done. Lumber, slumber, straggle, wobble even as she eventually does triumph. And triumph she will. As will the notion of the Indian over the various subcategorisations.

Fair enough – you do have a point of view and so do I. I think we can healthily agree to disagree even as we allow full power of expression to everyone involved. A power that stems to us from the book you refer to as “some book(constitution)” and I have all the more reason to feel even more attached to that same book – because it grants me the very freedom and liberties that a sheer variety of parochial movements all across India are out to stifle.

It’s your claim that the people are unjustly feeling cynical and are prejudiced in thinking that Marathi is under siege as you explain in one comment here:

What this post actually emphasises is our thought that we are the aggrieved and others are guilty. It also points out that often we believe others are being cynically exploited even as we are unaware of us being victims of the same cynicism, craftiness and prejudices.

This is YOUR hypothesis that it’s a delusion. You need to prove that this is just delusion and not a real thing.

BTW, the Karnataka oath incidence was not without resistance. Vatal Nagaraj protested and it was exactly the same situation that Sanskrit or English was not resisted but Marathi was resisted. It didn’t lead to physical level only because it didn’t involve Azami and MNS together. But the rationale is same.
If a Marathi insists that the assembly proceedings (please note, the proceedings and not the oath) be done in any other language than Tamil in Tamilnadu assembly it’ll be considered attack on Tamil language and state of Tamilnadu. I find that justifiable. Similarly, anyone demanding any other language for proceedings in Maharashtra assembly is an attack on Marathi and Maharashtra statehood. The way you are worried about someone attacking India’s north boarders I’m worried about my language. We’ve similar feelings albeit about different things.
Your nation state concept is fragile. Not many “such” nation states have survived long in the history. The main reason India in not yet disintegrated is mainly due to the status-quoist attitude of the populace at large. Who bothers these days about nation except at the superficial level of a cricket match? There too, it’s more about us vs them. Not during the team selection. If Ganguly is out, Bengali’s feel offended and take it to streets. Not because of worries about India’s loss but because a ‘Bengali’ got dropped. That is why, the concept of India as a nation based on some book (constitution) is flawed and riddled with excess baggage. If India becomes something like a European Union it’ll be of great help to most of the people here and their respective cultures and languages. Till then, she’ll be pushed and pulled in opposite directions again and again from within and will keep dragging her feet.
Please remind me the significant contributions to the world. Remember, it’s India of age 63 that I’m talking about. Compare and contrast with other nations. Reflect why it is so.

Strange. Nation state is an artificial and that too, political creation. It’s just the current experiment in governance by human race. How can it override the more natural bonding and grouping based on a Language? Why to stop at the notion of India?

I am not the one deciding at starting from or stopping at the notion of India. A decision was made in 1947. I inherited it. My inheritance includes the “commons” we call India. Even if described as artificial, it is for all practical purposes more real than anything else. My rights as a citizen of the country stem from the constitution of the Union of India and not from the Gujarat bred or Marathi speaking communities I am a part of. The threats my country faces from the external world are far more severe than the so called threats you refer to against Marathi language. I simply respond to what is practical and appropriate rather than getting emotive about it. I would much rather Indians got together and competed better with the rest of the world rather than isolate ourselves into multiple internally conflicting subcultures and again suffer the brutal subjugation we’ve been subjected to in the past under the British rule.

Now, about the fissures and walls part. There is just verbal assurance from you and nothing else

You read far too much into my statements. It was not even an assurance. it was an opinion – an opinion borne out of analysis through by highly individualistic, opinionated, subjective self. It was an opinion which someone can choose to agree or disagree with, albeit an opinion made with full honesty.

You don’t provide any evidence to indicate that the Marathi is not under attack while the Marathi people are seeing the evidence in the form of Azamis of India everyday.

If I go to some other state and speak marathi with those who are willing to speak marathi with me – is that an attack ? I still speak Gujarati in Maharashtra whenever I get a chance, just as I spoke, Marathi, Gujarati and Hindi when I was staying in US whenever I got a chance and whoever I got a chance with. is that an attack ? If yes, thats xenophobia. Thats something I wholeheartedly disapprove of. In addition of course it violates my constitutional rights since these are not a function of the language / caste / religion / region I belong to.

Is he not forcing Marathi people to learn these foreign languages by these demands? Did any of your ilk preach ‘India First’ to him at that time? Did you not see it as attack on India’s integrity?

No, I do not see it as an attack on India’s integrity. In fact just like when the MLAs in Karnataka legislature took their oaths in Marathi or when others in other assembly choose to take their oaths in non state majority languages – I simply see it as a celebration of India’s diversity. Quite frankly I am not sure if you use these words loosely when you suggest it as an attack on Indias integrity. I see constraining Indian citizens from exercising their constitutional privileges as an attack on India’s integrity.

Didn’t you expect a reaction from Marathi people on such things? Raj Thackaray is a reactionary symptom. There was a feeling of discomfort. Someone spoke about it openly. Don’t try to treat the symptom by painting MNS as villain but go to the root cause. I know how comfortable it is to take a so called ‘liberal’ stand when you are facing non-Marathi people everyday. But, remember, it’s at the expense of your own language and your own people.

While topically driven by the happenings in Maharashtra legislature, I have been very careful in not treating it as an MNS or Marathi Manoos specific issue. I am against every single incident where people from any region of India treat any Indians any differently from other – irrespective of what such differentiation emanates from – domicile, religion, caste, language. PERIOD.

But, remember, it’s at the expense of your own language and your own people. We are not asking people in Chennai to speak Marathi in their assembly. We are trying to defend our state from the invasion. If you think this is not true come up with the evidence. We need hard evidence and not just your verbal assurances to prove that Marathi is not under siege.

My own language is irrelevant and my own people are Indians.

What the British did was invasion. What we could see in a few years if things go haywire on our northern borders is an invasion. What happened on 26/11 is an invasion. I am far far more concerned about India under siege rather than Marathi / Gujarati / Telugu / Tamil / Bengali / Assamese / under siege. And you seem to have completely misunderstood the whole notion of proof and evidence. The onus of proof is on the one making the hypothesis. I have not made any hypothesis whatsoever in the context of Marathi (or for that matter any other language) being under siege or not. If thats a belief that you carry, you are free to offer or not offer evidence for your hypothesis.

India, as a nation state, is an artificial and temporary phenomenon. It was not there 63 years back. We don’t know whether it’ll be there after 63 years.

Every long running idea, concept, notion, or entity has always been too young at some time. That per se does not make it any less important. Nevertheless I shall remember to pray for it to be around for at least another 6300 years

Hence, it’s more obligatory to strive for survival of one’s language than to for a nation state. To that extent, I’m perfectly agreeing to Ajit’s comment about ‘doing right’.

I’m afraid you are completely at odds with the essential genesis of our nation state. Quite frankly I think English is a far far bigger threat to Marathi. So if you would like to back up your assertion I would suggest you work along two lines of activity. a). Get in a constitutional amendment to offer state and domicile based citizenship so that the loyalties you suggest and as expected by the current polity can at least be consistent with each other. b) Stop using English and use Marathi everywhere you would otherwise use English. Because remember – in the long run if and when Marathi becomes less important English will have played a big role in that.

Cricket and to some extent Bollywood have acted as strong binding forces. So your point is well taken.

However I shall choose to differ on your opinion about the poor judiciary being the cause. A democracy always gives us a government we collectively deserve – judiciary quality notwithstanding. There is however an extension I would make to your argument. A democracy gives us the ability to be the jury as far as the verdict on our leaders is concerned. To the extent we are given the powers to judge by our vote – I would agree that the judiciary has failed us (though I believe thats not the point you were making )

But as evidenced during the Los Angeles riots, its easy to fan the flames of hatred and no country’s masses are immune from that. Our statesmen, though, have converted it into an art-form and do it without any fear of retribution. The only reason for their nonchalance is the poor judiciary – how many of these *elected* leaders have truly been convicted for holding the country at ransom? Bring back the faith in the judiciary and honor to governance and you will have your smiles and India back.

It’s amazing to see people clapping to appreciate a ‘gesture’ towards ‘marathi asmita’…what they don’t realize is it’s just that…an empty gesture, a well planned marketing ploy. Sadly people try to see the content behind it. Like they say, you can’t fix stupid