One nation, one language row avoidable
In what has become an annual ritual, netas in the North extol the virtues of Hindi once a year, making grand statements of promoting it as the common national language. And politicians in the South go into hyperbole calling it Hindi expansionism. On Saturday, it was the turn of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to do the drumbeat on Hindi Diwas, saying it was the only language that can unite the whole country. Way back in 2010, on that year’s Hindi Diwas, the then Vice President Hamid Ansari and the then Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, made almost the same point, the latter in heavily accented Hindi.
Till the Congress was in power, exhortations on Hindi Diwas were ignored since it was assumed the party wouldn’t go beyond lip service. But what Shah says cannot be brushed aside lightly, as he is the most powerful person in the government after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Almost immediately there was a howl of protest from the political class in the South, claiming it indicated the BJP’s contempt for non-Hindi speakers, adding that it was creating a new language battlefield.
The nationalism point is well taken. For example, it was a proud moment when Modi made his opening remarks in Hindi with Donald Trump alongside on the sidelines of the recent G7 summit, with the US President quipping Modi speaks English well but had chosen to address in Hindi for other reasons. The problem though lies in the fears of Hindi’s imposition, with leaders in the South saying it is just one of the languages in the Eighth Schedule, no less, no more. Shah’s point that 60% of file notings in his department are in Hindi now, up from 10%when he assumed office in May-end, could have added to the coercion worry.
However, the fact remains that Hindi is not advanced enough yet and there is no denying English continues to be the best option for higher education and job opportunities at home and abroad. On a different note, for a party that is trying to expand in the South, getting itself tripped on identity politics was surely avoidable.