Debate Over National Language

At the time of Independence, there were eleven major languages in India, each spoken by more than a million people. In colonial India, English was used as the official language but with the attainment of independence the question arose about having a ‘national’ or ‘official’ language, replacing English. Gandhi had recommended the use of Hindustani as the national language of the country for the sake of national integration. Nehru too acknowledged the potential of Hindustani—not too Sanskritised, not too Persianised—to become the national language. On the whole, the idea of Hindi as a national language was not appreciated by the non-Hindi speaking southern and eastern regions of India. In the wake of serious resistance, the Language Committee of Constituent Assembly came up with a compromise formula. The Committee decided that the Hindi in Devanagari script was to be the ‘official’ language, but transition to Hindi would be gradual. For the first fifteen years, English would continue to be used for all official purposes, and each province could choose one of the regional languages, for official work within the province, which were to be listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. Thus, by referring to Hindi as the official language rather than national, the committee hoped to placate the opposition.

The language issue was further clarified by Parliament

in 1963 through the Official Languages Act which stated that Hindi was to become the official language in India from

1965. But as a concession to the non-Hindi speakers, English was accorded the status of ‘associate additional official language’. Despite this, among non-Hindi speakers, especially in south India, the resentment against Hindi continued, and in late 1964 and in early 1965, violent demonstrations erupted over the language issue. The Official Languages (Amendment) Act of 1967, provided a bilingual (English- Hindi) solution for any official communication between the Centre and states, and gave a concession to the diverse multiplicity of languages by recognising regional languages in provincial administration and in public service examinations.