Published on: Nov 10, 2025 04:44 am IST
Residents in Mahim protested against the BMC’s plan to demolish a Marathi school, claiming it threatens the city’s cultural identity and education.
MUMBAI: Parents of school students and residents protested in Mahim on Sunday against the proposed demolition of a Marathi-medium school building owned by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Protesters alleged that the civic body is deliberately trying to shut down Marathi schools in Mumbai, comparing it to the razing of textile mills decades ago before the lands were redeveloped by private players. They claimed that schools are being declared unsafe through questionable audits to pave the way for its redevelopment.
The protest held outside the New Mahim Municipal School drew participation from residents of Mahim, supporters of the Marathi language, social activists, and several well-known personalities from the cultural and educational sectors. Marathi Abhyas Kendra and other local organisations came together to oppose BMC’s decision and demanded that the third-party structural audit report be made publicly available before taking any demolition action.
Deepak Pawar from Marathi Abhyas Kendra said the situation mirrors what happened with Mumbai’s textile mills. “The mills were once shut down under the excuse of being unviable, only for their lands to be taken over later. The same pattern is now repeating with Marathi schools. These schools are being deliberately labelled unsafe through structural audits so that their lands can eventually be used for private projects,” he said.
Pawar added that Marathi schools are not just educational spaces but symbols of the city’s linguistic and cultural identity. “Shutting them down is like erasing the Marathi soul of Mumbai,” he said. He warned that if the trend continues, Marathi education in the city will collapse in the coming years.
Actors and public figures, including Chinmayi Sumeet, educationist Girish Samant, playwright Shafaat Khan, and activist Prasanna Raut, joined the protest. They called the move an assault on Marathi education and demanded that the state government step in immediately.
The protesters have several demands from the BMC and the state government, including an immediate halt to the Mahim school demolition, public release of all audit reports of Marathi schools, and a time-bound plan to rebuild schools without converting them into commercial spaces.
Pawar further said, “If the government does not act now, we will soon see the Marathi identity of this city disappear.”
