I
ndia is a sub continent with citizenship
of multitude of population with varied
culture, food habits, dressing pattern and
social behaviours. Among the cultural factors,
language plays a major role in keeping the
harmony of the people. Many languages,
with and without script are spoken and 22
languages are placed in the VIII Schedule of
Indian Constitution by giving equal status to all.
Indian Constitution had to give some special
status to Hindi language, carefully crafted,
with Devnagiri script. The back ground of this
specialty obtained with the casting of single vote
to get the majority from the presiding person
that could be known from the proceedings of
the Constituent Assembly and the writings of
the chairman of the Drafting Committee of the
Constitution Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
After the Constitution came into effect,
sustained efforts are being made to impose
Hindi on non Hindi speaking by the Centre.
Stiff opposition for imposing Hindi came from
Tamil Nadu and not so from other States in
the beginning. The present leader of Dravidar
Kazhagam, the parental organization for the
Dravidian Movement, Asiriyar Dr. K. Veeramani
used to say, “Our opposition to Hindi is
older than the Hindi itself”. Hindi was given
some special status as per the provisions of
Indian Constitution which came into effect
only after independence. But opposition to
Hindi imposition was started even prior to
independence in 1938 under the visionary
leadership of Periyar E.V.R., the father of
Dravidian Movement.
Due to the special status given to Hindi language,
all other non Hindi speaking people are made
second class citizens. Many of the competitive
examinations conducted by the Centre for the
recruitment in the government services are
conducted in Hindi and English. By this Hindi
speaking people are put up in an advantage
more than non Hindi speaking people to fair
well and get through
which deny the equality and equal opportunities
to all as adumbrated in the Constitution. Now
slowly opposition to Hindi imposing started tocome up organizationally from many state like
Karnataka, Kerala, in the North from Punjab and
Maharashtra.
Forecasting the incompatibility of Hindi’s
special status with the rest of the language
speaking people Periyar led the agitation to stop
the imposition periodically whenever thrust
came from the ruler-authority.
The founder of DMK, the political party of
Dravidian Movement Anna when he became the
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in 1967 with the
mandate of the people, he brought resolution for
the two language policy in the State Legislative
Assembly and got it passed. At that time Anna
pointed, the two language policy resolution
passed would prevail forever, whether himself
or any others assume the role of ruling the
State. No one would dare enough to change it.
Until then it means himself (Anna), brought up
and backed up in Dravidian ideology has been
ruling the State. In that line, Anna is still ruling
the State of Tamil Nadu. Two language policy
is sustained in the State.
On the language policy the Tamil Nadu model
of two language policy viz regional language of
the State and English will be ideal and make the
people of the country to live in harmony. Every
individual has got freedom to learn any other
language and they can do so on their own. State
government will not interfere in such freedom.
But government policy continues to remain
only with two language formula.
Recently in the draft of the National Education
Policy 2019, the learning of Hindi was
recommended as compulsory. Immediately,
the opposition to the compulsion emanated
from Tamil Nadu which made the present BJP
led Central government to state that Hindi
would not be compulsory.
The permanent solution on the language
policy remains only in two language policy –
respective regional language and English and
that is ideal for the unity and integrity of the
country. The feeling of oneness with equality
is the foundation on which the nation India has
to be built up.
nietzsche
The Modern RationalistJuly 2019