'Madrasas Should Teach Marathi': Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane Stirs Row

Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane ignited controversy by advocating for madrasas to replace Urdu with Marathi instruction and deliver the Azaan in Marathi.

Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane has sparked a political firestorm after making controversial remarks suggesting that madrasas should replace Urdu with Marathi as the medium of instruction—and that the Islamic call to prayer, or Azaan, should also be delivered in Marathi.

The comments came as a reaction to the Congress party’s recent efforts to establish Marathi pathshalas in select areas of Mumbai. Dismissing the move as superficial, Rane said that there was no need for separate Marathi schools and instead of Urdu, madrasas should teach Marathi. "Otherwise, all one gets from there is a gun,” he said, as per a report on India Today.

Nitesh Rane's Comments Receive Opposition 

Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane came under heavy fire from Opposition parties on Wednesday after he suggested that Marathi should replace Urdu in madrasas and that the Islamic call to prayer (Azaan) be recited in Marathi. Critics accused Rane of deliberately provoking communal tensions and using sensitive issues to gain political mileage ahead of the state elections.

Opposition leaders denounced the remarks as inflammatory and divisive, warning they could exacerbate social tensions.

Senior NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar faction) leader Shashikant Shinde told IANS that matters of language and religious practice fall under the Home Ministry's jurisdiction and should not be used for political gain. Rohit Pawar, also from NCP(SP), echoed the criticism, calling Rane’s comments politically driven and likely influenced by his party’s leadership.