A bunch of Marathi supporters led by their hero, Subhash Velingkar staged a dharna protest in Panaji on Tuesday demanding official language status for Marathi and condemning its exclusion from government recruitment examinations. Well, these pro-Maharashtrawadi elements should first tell the government of Maharashtra to declare Konkani as a official language and also to include it as an eligible subject along with Marathi during all recruitments in that state. The reason why these individuals are heard making such absurd demands today is because they want to help people from Maharashtra to take up government jobs in the state in future. Konkani is not just the mother tongue of Goans but is a language of our unique identity/cultural heritage of Goa. And taking this fact into consideration, Konkani was rightfully bestowed the top position and made the sole official language of the state way back in 1987. I therefore personally feel that if the above individuals are really Goans then they should raise slogans of Konkani pride to unite Goans and to safeguard our unique identity for the future generations.
