KTR Criticizes Amit Shah’s Push for Greater Hindi Acceptance
KT Rama Rao (KTR), the working president of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), has sharply criticized Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent advocacy for increased acceptance of Hindi across India. KTR voiced concerns about the potential implications of such a push, emphasizing the importance of preserving India’s linguistic diversity.
In a statement on social media platform X, KTR questioned the need to elevate Hindi’s status when India is home to 22 official languages, including Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, Marathi, Oriya, and Gujarati. He argued that promoting one language at the expense of others could lead to “language chauvinism,” which he warned would be detrimental to the nation.
Amit Shah, addressing the newly constituted Parliamentary Committee on Official Language, had called for greater acceptance of Hindi, highlighting its association with employment and technology. Shah emphasized that this push for Hindi should not come at the cost of other languages, and stressed that the new education policy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi supports teaching in mother tongues while promoting all Indian languages.
Shah underscored the need for Hindi to become more widely accepted without competing with other languages. He referenced efforts over the past decade to integrate Hindi with modern technologies and noted that a software is being developed to translate all languages listed in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
While Shah envisions Hindi becoming a unifying medium of communication, KTR’s response reflects apprehension over potentially marginalizing other regional languages. He reiterated that linguistic diversity is one of India’s greatest strengths and cautioned against any moves that might undermine it.
The ongoing debate underscores the complex dynamics of language politics in India and the challenges of balancing national unity with regional identities. The final outcomes of these discussions will likely shape the linguistic landscape of the country in the years to come.
