BENGALURU: After a controversy broke out after a State Government order mandating proficiency in Urdu language for applicants for the post of anganwadi teachers in Mudigere taluk of Chikkamagaluru district, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya wrote to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah asking him to immediately withdraw the order.
In his letter, the Bengaluru South MP wrote that Congress is trapping Kannadigas like Tippu and Hyder Ali did, by making Urdu compulsory in anganwadis.
Surya also shared the letter on ‘X’ later in which he condemned the move. “It is condemnable that the child and women’s welfare ministry has ordered Urdu eligibility for anganwadi jobs. This is being done by Congress as appeasement politics. Congress in Karnataka forgot that Kannada is supreme in Karnataka. It will be a big blow to the existence of Kannada in Karnataka. That’s why I request you to suspend the concerned officers who ordered such blunders and take strict action against those who conspire against Kannada,” Surya wrote.
He added that “in Karnataka, Kannada is caste, Kannada is religion” and such decisions by the State Government are a huge insult to the identity of Kannadigas. The government order from the Department of Women and Child Welfare, which required applicants in Mudigere, to be proficient in Urdu, quickly went viral receiving flak from many.
Meanwhile, the BJP Karnataka also posted on ‘X’ saying, “Kannada, a language with rich history and heritage, doesn’t need Urdu to survive! Why impose Urdu on our people, Siddaramaiah? This is Karnataka/Bharath, not Pakistan! @INCIndia’s appeasement policies are sidelining Kannadigas pride and culture. We won’t let Kannada be disrespected. We’ll fight this injustice!”