The son or daughter-of-the-soil politics in Mumbai, so far restricted to humans, has taken an interesting turn with Bharatiya Janata Party leaders demanding that Penguin chicks born in a city zoo be given Marathi names, arguing that the flightless birds are domicile of Maharashtra by birth.
While a protest by BJP workers appeared to be about identity politics ahead of elections to the Mumbai civic body, it highlighted the classical language status of the Marathi language to justify naming Penguin chicks.
BJP leader from the Byculla assembly constituency Nitin Bankar led the demonstration.
"When Penguins were brought from abroad to the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Botanical Udyan and Zoo (commonly known as Rani Baug), we accepted that their names would be in English. However, chicks born here, on the soil of Maharashtra, should be given Marathi names," he said.
Bankar claimed that repeated appeals to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had gone unheard.
"We stood firm on our demand, but it was ignored. I had even written to the BMC administration, but no one responded," he claimed.
Bankar said if Marathi has received classical language status, why can't some of the penguin chicks be given Marathi names?