MUMBAI, Aug. 28 -- Days after transport minister and Shiv Sena leader Pratap Sarnaik announced that the licences of auto and taxi drivers unable to speak Marathi would be suspended after three months if they failed to learn the language till then, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis stepped in and on Thursday announced a one-year extension for the drivers. The CM added that no action would be taken against them till then. With this, Fadnavis killed two birds with one stone, said political observers. One, he cornered the Eknath Shinde-led Sena and Sarnaik, who were playing the Marathi card, and underlined his authority in the state government. Two, he pacified the substantial number of North Indian migrants in the city, who have been the BJP's vote bank for the last 12 years, well before the UP elections next year. The lack of action by the party against the Marathi language drive had raised concerns among them. A delegation of auto and taxi drivers led by Haji Arafat Shaikh, who is the leader of the BJP's transport wing, met Fadnavis on Thursday. They pointed out that a huge number of drivers could not speak Marathi, and it was not possible for them to acquire a working knowledge of the language in just three months. When they demanded extra time and protection against the punitive action by the transport department, Fadnavis agreed to give them relief. Speaking to the media after the meeting, Fadnavis said, "This afternoon, a delegation of auto and taxi drivers met me and requested additional time to learn Marathi. Most of them are not very educated so they will require more time. I have decided to give them a year's extension, and from today, no action will be taken against them for a year." Shaikh thanked Fadnavis for this relief. "We welcome the decision announced by the CM," he said. "Some people were attempting to play politics with the Marathi issue. But now CM Fadnavis has addressed the concerns of drivers." Pratap Sarnaik, whose decision was overruled, also claimed to welcome the decision, saying that the chief minister was the supreme authority in the state government. "We had given drivers 105 days to learn Marathi," he said. "But now that they have a full year in hand, we hope they will study well and speak fluent Marathi." Sarnaik added that if another extension was sought, it would not be granted. "We will hold the test after a year and they will have to pass it, otherwise action will be taken against them," he said. "It is their duty to respect Maharashtra's language and culture." Shashank Rao, BJP leader and president of the Mumbai Autorickshaw-Taximen's Union, called the decision "a big relief for drivers". Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Nirupam, who had opposed the transport department's action against drivers, also expressed gratitude. "We are not opposing Marathi but only want more time," he said. "Now the government needs to issue the revised orders."...