The controversy erupted after Shah, speaking at the Rajbhasha Sammelan in Navi Mumbai, described Maharashtra as a leading multilingual state and said there was no reason to oppose learning an additional national language alongside one’s mother tongue

Sanjay Raut said that Shiv Sena (UBT) has no objection to an impartial investigation but alleged that the case is being exploited for political motives, while Rohit Pawar linked the CBI's activity to the possibility of early elections