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The Official Language of the Union

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The Official Language of the Union THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY October 19, 1957 The Official Language of the Union K C Sen ON the attainment of indepen- The Terms of Reference missions in the States, Education dence, India was faced with On the June 7, 1955 the Presi­ is a subject, within the jurisdiction the problem of having a language dent appointed a Commission con­ of the States. The Commission has of the Union. This was no easy sisting of 20 persons, under the come to the conclusion that ulti­ task in a country the Constitution Chairmanship of the late Shri B G mately the judgments, decrees and of which has recognised the follow­ Kher, for the purposes (a) to (d) orders of the High Courts and the ing 14 languages : Assamese, Ben above, and as regards purpose (e), Supreme Courts will have to be in gali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, the following duty was cast on the Hindi; that Hindi will have to be Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Commission, "The preparation or a compulsorily taught in all the States, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, time-schedule according to which although for the purposes of a Telugu, and Urdu. Three things and the manner in which Hindi may State the Government institutions may be noticed about this list en gradually replace English as the and administration are expected to passant: (a) Sanskrit, which, ac­ official language of the Union and use the regional languages; and the cording to the 1951 census, is as a language for communication Commission has devoted two Chap­ spoken by only 555 persons, is re­ between the Union and State ters (Chapters XIII &. XIV) to the cognised as a living language of Governments and between one State subject of Propagation and .Deve­ India, while (b) English, which was Government and another". The lopment of Hindi and the regional shown in the same census as the Commission submitted its Report to languages and to Agencies for im­ mother-tongue of 1,71,742 persona, the President in July 1956. plementation of the National Lan­ has not been so recognised; and guage programme, apparently with As to (b) the Commission has (c) Urdu has been recognised as a, reference to Article 351 of the stated, at page 128 of the Report: language distinct from Hindi. Constitution which runs as follows, "We do not pee that anything is "It shall be the duty of the Union The Constitutional Position to be gained by imposing such for­ to promote the spread of the Hindi The Constituent Assembly which mal restriction in respect of any of enacted the Constitution selected the official purposes of the Union language, to develop it so that it Hindi in Devanagari script as the at present and we have therefore may serve as a medium of expres­ official language of the Union. In no recommendations to make in sion for all the elements of the a multi-lingual country like ours, this behalf". As to (e), the Com­ composite culture of India and to all the 14 languages could not be mission has been unable to frame secure its enrichment by assimila­ the official-languages, like the a time-schedule and has recommen­ ting without interfering with its three official languages of Switzer­ ded that it should be framed by the genius, the forms. style and ex­ land or the two official languages Union Government instead (pages pressions used in Hindustani and of Canada and Belgium. The 129 & 130 of the Report). in the other languages of India Constitution lays down that after specified in the Eighth Schedule, 1965, English will not continue to Thus the Commission's Report and by drawing, whenever neces­ be used for official purposes of the would be expected to contain It ) sary or desirable, for its vocabulary Union, with the proviso that Eng­ recommendations as to (a) the primarily on Sanskrit and second­ lish may be used only for such pur­ progressive use of Hindi for the ly on other languages". Union's official purposes, (b) the poses as may be specified by Par­ Hindi, the Medium liament. During the interim period language to be used in the Supreme Commissions are to be appointed at Court and the High Court, the Acts, Almost at the beginning of the intervals of 5 years to make re­ rules, etc., and (c) the form of Report, the Commission (p, 39 ) commendations as to, numerals to be used for the Union.'.- observes flint Article 351 provides purposes. As to the last, the Com­ that the Hindi language "shall be (a) the progressive use of the mission has recommended the use so developed as to serve as the Hindi language for the offi­ of the international form of Indian medium for all the elements of the cial purposes of the Union; numerals, following clause 1 of composite culture of India". Is it (b) restrictions on the use of Article 343 of the Constitution. the unconscious bias of the Com­ English for such purposes; Instead of confining its further re­ mission in favour of Hindi that is (c) the language to be used in commendations to (a) and (b), it responsible for the substitution of the Supreme Court and in has allowed itself to go beyond its the word "the" for the word "a" the High Courts, and for terms of reference. arriving at in the Article a mistake repeated Acts, Bills, orders, rules, etc.; " 'conclusions' on other aspects of by Shri Maganbhai P Desal (d) the form of, numerals to be the language question not strictly (p. 383), although he purports to used for the purposes of the within the terms of reference but quote the actual words of the Ar­ Union, and relatable to them". ticle? This confusion explains the (e) any other matter referred by frequent ministerial pronounce­ Some Related Matters the President as regards ments (noticed on page 22, footnote) the official language of the These "conclusions'', inter alia referring to Hindi as "the national Union and the language for relate to education, making the language", an expression never communication between the teaching of Hindi compulsory at used in the Constitution. The duties Union and a State or bet- certain stages in schools and colle­ of the Commission had nothing ween one State and another.' ges and the Public Service Com­ to do with Article 351, which does 1359 October 19, 1957 THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY October 19, 1957 not relate to the official language of matters outside the Commission's finds expression in the dissenting of the Union but to a language to terms of reference suggests that the minutes of Dr Chatterji and Dr be used by all people as a medium apprehension referred to is not al­ Subbarayan. Shri Mehta has said, of expression. This distinction is together idle. Shri Maganbhai P "The O L C report, in this regard, noted particularly in the Note by Desal has observed, "I have felt has not only 'over-flown' the forms Shri Maganbhai P Desai on the that in their cumulative effect these of reference, but also overstepped Report. so-called 'conclusions' (of the Com­ them and made suggestion and mission) err in creating an impres­ remarks, which, to say the least, The Weakness of Hindi sion that Hindi is sought to be will not help allay fears and -appre­ The "two Hindis", so far as they used in places where it should bet­ hensions noted above in this note". are sponsored and "developed" by ter avoid conflict with the legiti­ It would be the tendency of the official or semi-official agencies, may mate claim of regional or State Hindi-speaking peoples to regard not ultimately be very different languages. It is this avoidable their language as superior to the from each other. It is important, conflict that would rather jeopardise other languages of India and ge­ however, to note that even now India's unity by unwittingly pro­ nerally to advocate the imposition different varieties of the language voking emotional malintegration of Hindi in non-Hindi speaking are In use in different parts of the among linguistic groups". areas. The largeness of the Hindi- speaking areas and population, the country. Dr Suniti Kumar Chat- An illustration on this point is unique position of Hindi as the terjl observes: "Three or four con­ furnished by a bill which was flicting tendencies, each with introduced in the State Legislature Union's language, the necessity for strong supporters, are hampering of Bombay four years ago prescrib­ the State Government's to corres­ its development, and most other In­ ing Hindi as the official language pond with the Union and other dian languages are free from this of the State for purposes (includ­ States in Hindi, the compulsory conflict of ideals". Hindi properly ing legislative) higher than those teaching of Hindi in the educational belongs to the peoples of Western at the taluka and district levels. It institutions of all States (the Uttar Pradesh, Eastern Punjab and was argued in favour of this move suggestion that Hindi-speaking parts of Madhya Bharat, Madhya that as the State was multilingual, peoples should be compelled to Pradesh and Rajasthan; others Hindi ought to be the language for learn another language being speaking languages like Braj-Bha- official purposes at the higher brushed aside by the Commission sha, Awadhi, Bhojpuri, Rajasthan, level. The bill had to be dropped as an "imposition", p 191)— will Garhwali, etc., who first took to on account of the popular opposi­ not all this give rise to a feeling Urdu have now taken to Khariboll tion to it. that Hindi is a language of pri­ Hindi, as taught In the schools in mary.
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