At a rally in Mira-Bhayandar on July 19, MNS chief Raj Thackeray struck back at BJP MP Nishikant Dubey's earlier controversial remarks, replacing Dubey’s threat to “patak‑patak ke maarenge” Marathi speakers with his own warning: “Mumbai ke samundar mein dubo‑dubo ke maarenge” (we’ll drown you in the sea at Mumbai) should Dubey dare to enter Maharashtra. Thackeray clarified that he didn’t oppose Hindi per se, but strongly objected to attempts at forcing it on Marathi speakers. 

Dubey refused to retract his statement, defending Hindi pride and stating: “I am proud that my mother tongue is Hindi… I do not take the law into my hands.” He added that if Marathis can assault Hindi speakers, they should try it in states like Bihar and Tamil Nadu, poking at MNS’s anti-migrant history.

The clash emerges amid revived tensions over Maharashtra’s three-language policy, which included a contested government resolution making Hindi compulsory from Class I to V - the policy was later rolled back. Raj and Uddhav Thackeray have since united under the banner of defending Marathi identity, significantly pressuring the state government to recant. 

The intensifying rhetoric has triggered calls from civil society groups for restraint. Mumbai lawyers demanded legal action, citing rising aggression toward non-Marathi speakers. Meanwhile, regional identity politics continue to escalate in the run-up to civic elections.