In a disturbing repeat of rising language-based vigilantism in Maharashtra, former Member of Parliament Rajan Vichare from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) is at the center of controversy after a video surfaced showing traders being allegedly threatened and forced to apologise for not speaking Marathi.
The incident, captured on video and widely circulated on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), shows Vichare and his supporters confronting a group of traders at his office. The men are seen demanding that business owners communicate only in Marathi, warning them against using any other language. According to sources, some traders were even assaulted by party workers before being made to issue public apologies.
This act of language policing has sent shockwaves through Maharashtra’s business community, especially following a similar case just days earlier involving MNS workers in Mira-Bhayandar. In that case, a restaurant owner was physically attacked for not speaking in Marathi with customers — sparking mass protests and a business shutdown across the region.
On the morning of July 3, Mira-Bhayandar saw widespread shop closures as traders downed shutters in silent protest. Visuals of empty streets and locked storefronts flooded social media, highlighting the growing fear and unrest among small business owners.
