Hindi debate: PC’s old video, BSY add twist

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 16

The heated debate generated by Home Minister 

Amit Shah’s views on Hindi as a unifying language continues to rage. 

A day after UPA ally DMK sounded a warning and on the day actor-turned-politician Kamal Hasaan posted a video in strong opposition to any move to “impose” Hindi, Sports Minister Kiran Rijuju dug out an old video of jailed former Congress minister P Chidambaram saying pretty much what Shah said on Saturday. 

Speaking at a Hindi Divas function, Chidambaram can be seen favouring Hindi as ‘rashtrabhasha’. “(This is) the stand of the Congress party on Hindi, tell this to your allies as well,” Rijuju tweeted even as BJP Chief Minister in Karnataka BS Yeddiyurappa sounded a cautious note. 

“All official languages in our country are equal. However, as far as Karnataka is concerned, Kannada is the principal language. We will never compromise its importance and are committed to promoting Kannada and our state’s culture,” said the CM in the only southern state held by the BJP. 

DMK president MK Stalin yesterday raised a strong objection to Shah’s push for Hindi and asked his party workers to be prepared for a battle to stop the move to “impose” Hindi on all states.

 “India is a nation comprising people who speak 1,652 different regional languages. Amit Shah’s speech on Saturday advocating Hindi as the national language spoken by majority of the people came as a scorpion sting and has challenged the unity of the nation,” Stalin was quoted as saying. 

Meanwhile, Makkal Needhi Maiam founder Kamal Haasan opposed any attempts to “impose” Hindi saying “no Shah, Sultan or Samrat must renege” on promise made decades ago. “We respect all languages, but our mother language will always be Tamil,” he said. 

Many languages not weakness: Rahul  

• The Congress on Monday batted for the multiplicity of languages with former party chief Rahul Gandhi saying the country's many languages are not her weaknesses.
• Gandhi tweeted all 22 official languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution plus English. Also, the Congress officially said Hindi was the national language and should be expanded to that extent