‘Think rationally about learning Hindi and it will make sense’

When people from Tamil Nadu move they, in all likelihood, being rational thinkers (who think resources should be spent on English), learn the local language to live there. This is not just about Hindi, but about the need to learn Hindi. Fortunately, unlike people from states who have to move south for jobs (from software to construction labor), people from TN do not fill trains headed north. Better governance compared to where Hindi is spoken has brought more work closer to us! Puzzling why someone moves to Chennai for work and then expects Hindi: a primary reason for your move is because you could not find a job in your hometown. Maybe if your states focused more on developmental measures, provided better public services, the likes of TCS would set up offices in your hometowns, where you can get by with Hindi. This is similar to proselytizing missionaries convincing that their religion is the better one. They also want you to think rationally about converting to their religion.

Justice Katju is quite right. And he is not talking about imposition, like many of the commenters seem to think. He is just talking practical sense. For a Tamilian who wants to only stay in TN and not interact with the outside (of TN) world, it is enough that he knows only Tamil. But if you do want to interact with the outside world, then you need to know many languages. Of those, the ones that will help you address most of the others (due to sheer numbers of people speaking the same) are Hindi and English.
This practical advice applies for students and people who seek jobs and a profession outside of their TN homebase.
It does not apply for politicians and jingoists, whose only motive is to rake up passions along linguistic lines, because there are several fools amongst us who are ever willing to be pawns and fall for such provocations.
Chill people - it's a practical suggestion to help you in your business, education and professional life. Learn Hindi - for your own good.

I agree!! I use to tell my friends the same when I was in Tamil Nadu. You tell them "Learn Hindi", Pat comes a reply "You cannot force us to learn hindi". They do not understand that No one can impose anything on them. They misinterpret "Learn Hindi as Imposition on them to learn it".The opinion what people in Tamil Nadu carry is just a mere Politicians plank which they play to forfiet their success in elections by making them realise that we(tamilians) are united and we should be against Hindi. On other hand their own children are studying in Delhi in CBSE board learning hindi.We all have to realise that we live in a country which requires Unity, and I think one of the way to achieve it would be if we bring atleast one language in common. english cannot be a medium to make india a successful nation as said its just 5% of indians who speaks English.We live in a democratic nation hence No one can force you to learn something.Learn Hindi! Speak Tamil.Make India proud!Make it a paradise.

We are fast becoming globalized citizens. In our daily conversations at home, work place, or interactions we use so many English words. Without anyone imposing the language, English has made itself an International communication medium. Just because they are in more numbers in a union of federal states in India the northerners impose Hindi. In Tamilnadu the politicians have used the agitations against that and cornered the power. We have understood the game of these wily politicians. We are breaking free of the chauvinism, intolerance, biased thinking and become citizens who will have respect for varied cultures all around the world.

I am a tamil and lived in chennai for 22 years, finished my college and joined a MNC in hyderabad. Our batch was a total of 50 and I was the only tamilian. Everybody was fluent in hindi and english except me. They were majority south indians. They were able to communicate with street vendors, auto, etc. I had to seek their help for all basic needs. earning hindi practically helps to live in any of the other states in India. Learning hindi doesnt mean we should forget tamil. I am a tamil patriot as well. I have traveled to many european countries and always spread how beautiful our language is. There is nothing wrong in learning another language which is helpful in communicating with other part of the country. Now the question is will a hindi speaking person learn tamil. Is tamil essential for a hindi speaking guy to live in any other states except TN? "vandhaarai vaazha vaikum boomi" learn hindi so we can let others live as well.

I am a Tamilian and aged 62 now and for nearly fifty years I have been
enjoying listening to the Hindi film songs in Vividh Bharathi. I don't
know the meaning but the tunes of old Hindi songs are so sweet. I also
enjoy Carnatic music. Songs from Meera both in Tamil and Hindi sung by
M.S. Subbulakshmi are so enchanting. Without understanding the meaning
the singing by Kanan Devi or Bhimsen Joshi are so absorbing. But I
hate imposition of Hindi and hate more the oliticians in Tamilnadu who have used the opposition to Hindi as a platform to enter governance.

Why all these discussions. When we all learn English, which has got the privilege at international level and entire world is becoming small, no need to learn Hindi. Mother tongue and English may be sufficient to survive better in this world. We get entire knowledge on science, technology, law, medical sciences,and any other global knowledge, every thing only through English and not through any of the Indian languages.So let us all, Indians, learn English in addition to their mother language. Then English will be the known language to one and all in India. If we talk about the uneducated then they may not be able to learn and talk Hindi too, the unwanted language for the Tamil people. English is not a foreign language and it is one of the Indian languages.

Mr. SS Kumar Iyer: I so heartily agree with you. Mr. Katju has launched a dubious proposal based on flimsy anecdotal evidence rather than analysis and historical insight. In the process, he has unnecessarily woken up the sleeping dog of linguistic chauvinism, one of the many fault lines in India today. Notwithstanding the fact that you can get beaten up in the Maharashtra Assembly for taking the oath in Hindi, the sneak Hindi imperialism that Mr. Katju suggests will revive the agitations that plagued the country in the 60s. Language issues are volatile and can become the rallying issue for mobilising people with other serious grievances. We see such conflicts in Belgium, Canada, Sri Lanka, Spain, Turkey etc. Back to Maharashtra. It turns out that MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s son studied in English medium at a prestigious school and chose to study a more useful language than Hindi. Perhaps Mr. Katju could begin by offering his advice to movers and shakers in places like Bombay.

Let me remind something that most of us often forget or conveniently ignore. 1. It is a fundamental right of any human being in this world to practice any religion, culture and language. The united nations charter states that the fundamental rights of all human beings must be protected without distinction of race, sex, language or religion. 2. India is a pluralistic country with different race, language, religion and culture. Trying or even thinking to impose one on the other will definitely prove detrimental for all. Best possible solution: Exchange of mutual respect to each other's language and culture. Learn Bengali when you are in West Bengal, learn Tamil when you are in Tamilnadu and so on.

Justice Katju, I hold u in the highest respects because i always have adored your views but in this view i do not agree. Language and identities belong to every tribe and the language and identity of one tribe cannot be super imposed on another tribe. A French is never going to accept english and speak in france. The simple truth is be a roman in rome, if not able to adapt one may die as per charles darwin. The second is would you advie in JNU about Hindi speaking people to also learn tamil? Every language has its own superiority and literature which cannot be killed by another language. Today india is united so we ask people to speak hindi and what is tommorow there is divide like Hindustan then a new language would evolve, so nobody cn ask one identity to follow their traditions. Every language has its own superiority

Dear friends, we invented language that is why we have so many common
words in all ancient Indian language and that includes Tamil,
Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu and Sanskrit. To my friends from northern
part of India, you all feel proud about Sanskrit but who preserved
it? It’s Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra and Tamil Nadu. I rarely find
anyone who tries to learn one of these great languages and yet you
feel proud because you know only Hindi and the symbol of slavery
English. And to all the friends from southern part of India, A house
owner in Bangalore refused to give his house on rent because I speak
Hindi. He said that I’ll not give my house to Hindi people. Yes I’m
Hindi speaking, but is it a stigma? People of my own country can do
this? I’m not taking it seriously but this is ground reality.

We all share same DNA, we are brother by blood, and we all love our
country. And No matter how deep the trench is, we’re going to cross
it and I’m willing to pay whatever it takes.

Beautifully argued points. Even if I could not agree with his argument I appreciate the way he put them through. His respect for Tamil shines through his argument.
Only Tamil people will know their apprehension and insecurity of being the last state in India where the native language is the main mode of communication. We fear the loss of status quo.
Meeting people from north who think you are not a true Indian unless you speak Hindi only strengthens the feeling.
Even here in UK where I live, I get regularly asked by people who originated from North India, why as an Indian, I don't speak Hindi? This is from people who have left their country for economical reasons!! I am also amused when Pakistanis also ask me this.

It is Wrong to dub Hindi as national language if one cares to look at what is adumbrated in Art.343.(1) of the constitution of India which reads:
"The official language of the Union shall be
Hindi in Devanagari script".
So Hindi is neither a national language nor a nationwide link language. One cannot also forget that it is the official language merely of the 'Union' in contradistinction to 'States'.
Making Hindi our national language remained all along a mere ideal. When some politicians tried to forcefully impose it, it boomeranged and the little enthusiasm that was evoked by the nationalists rather faded away.
To tell the truth it is Sanskrit, Urdu and English that are national languages if we narrowly construe nationality in the context of language as a binding force. Personally I like Hindi and in my young age I appeared in Examinations conducted by Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachara Sabha, Madras. Political over action spoils the mood of even genuine aspirants seeking to learn Hindi

Dear sir, I was indeed talking about the laguage issue in our country with some of my friends. It's great to see you too taking up this important issue. Totally agreeing with you, I am not against English, rather want everyone to learn it to get the knowledge from other parts of the world. But this is not the issue. The problem is that people today speak in English even where everyone knows Hindi. Speaking English is considered to be superior than Hindi. In metros, the mothertounge of small children has become English. Many parents talk to their children in English. If this will continue, soon we will be a country where English will be the only spoken language.

This argument is elaborate but lacks substance. Hindi is not a
national language but only official language. Even Shri. Rajaji had
opposed imposition of Hindi on the very ground that the so called non-
elite(or unlettered man) whose mother tongue is Hindi would have
advantage over the unlettered man whose mother tongue is not Hindi. If
people have to learn a language other than their mother tongue in
order to maintain communication with people of other regions why
should not they learn English which will serve the purpose both
nationally and internationally? Silappadikaram, Manimegalai,
Thirukkural etc. - all this are not read regularly or on daily basis
even by ordinary Tamilians. If a Tamilian, living in village would
reap lots of benefits by learning English and nothing by learning
Hindi. Because learning Hindi would be treated as his fundamental
obligation towards the nation and no gates of opportunity will open
for him whereas knowing English will open many door even in India.

I have been to Chennai for 2 years and it was really an amazing
experience to see their love towards their culture, language and people.
I just missed this in my place(Bihar) where we are too busy in our
livelihood. But somewhere I found a fear of losing identity in every
person arguing against Hindi. They appeared more against Hindi instead
of supporting their culture, language and all. There are people who
question the need of a national language, well if we have preifx
"National" before so many things than why not with the mode of
communication. People who don't want Hindi as the National Language
PLEASE SUGGEST AN ALTERNATIVE. I really loved the LOVE FOR THE CULTURE
in South India but the way they discard others is a matter of concern.
No surprises if foreign powers feel some states supportive in SPLITTING
THE NATION.

Well when i read the article headline,i knew that there will be lot of
responses in this article.As we Indians are still interested in these
trivial subjected issues of religion, caste, language.By reading
responses of so called educated people in this article, an outsider
can easily draw a conclusion that how weak we are as a nationalist and
there is a intense regionalistic feeling in us.It only makes us more
vulnerable to threats-internal or external.Recently we had seen the
evidence of it-an exodus of NE people.I am a north Indian,i lived in
Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and even countries like Korea.Learning
various languages only helped me to become a better man.It never
harmed me.This article is a opinion of a renowned person if you like
it you take it else not.

Though I agree with the sentiments of this article, I would prefer to learn English (or any language that helps us fetch livelihood) than Hindi. I can speak two south Indian languages, Hindi and English quite fluently. But unfortunately, learning an Indian language does not help in upward social mobility. It is as paradoxical as your appeal to accept Hindi, through an English mass media.

Why are some of the commenters so aggresive/defensive about their
mother-tongues? India is a land of diversity and we all must be proud
of our regional language and culture, but just as English is our link
to the world, Hindi(more than any other Indian language) is a
potential link with each other(i.e. inter-state).

If you are not averse to learning English, why this bias against
Hindi? We must work hard to preserve our mother-tongues, but that does
not mean disdain towards learning other languages. I am a South Indian
and speaking Hindi does not make me turn my back on my mothertongue.

Mr. Katju's opinion is based on his personal experiences. Inspite of his seemingly "proud and prejudiced" suggestion, he has been very gentlemanly in not imposing it as compulsory. However, one wonders if the retired judge did not expect any rejection of his opinion, so much so that he has re-appealed to "think rationally".

I think Mr Katju should not unnecessarily rake up issues and make comments that weaken our national unity. We have enough problems to deal with. The average man will learn whatever he needs to learn to survive. By making such pronouncements/arguments, he is stirring the cauldron of emotions.

Hindustani (in its Urdu form) has been the initiator of separatism in Pakistan leading to that country breaking up into Pakistan and Bangladesh. Hindustani (in its Hindi form) when imposed in India led to emotive agitations in many states - the Tamil Nadu agitations are better know. It (along with so called religious difference) has been involved in the second/third partition of Punjab into Punjab and Haryana.

We have enough troubles. So, Mr Katju and The Hindu please stop it. Do not rake up unnecessary emotional issues. People should learn and respect the local languages and learn whatever is necessary / useful to them to survive.

The best part of the article is that this has come up in English daily, advocating about Hindi; based in South and the article is written by someone from north.
While going through the article and comments I really felt that our textbooks lack much of the integrating factor. Its pity that our Hindi textbooks did not have quotes from Tirukkural. And, I guess, same would be the case with Tamil textbooks.
And, by the way, I am from Bihar and this article was recommended to me by my best friend who happens to be from Tamil Nadu. I am learning Tamil from her; and she Hindi from me.

If Hindi is not imposed on tamilians, many would have learnt Hindi now and Hindi would have become a link language. No need to blame Shri. Katju sir as he has categorically said that he is against imposition of Hindi. It is the Hindi fanatics who are really against Hindi making inroots in the non hindi speaking states. Making Hindi compulsory in competitive examination is an all out effort to isolate non hindi speaking people especially Tamilians. Radical people should put a thought over it. They should stop imposing Hindi. I think the Hindi fanatics would stop imposition better they spare their time for constructive works. People should have the freedom to speak, write any language they like. "Can they make the pegions sing in German" I think the quote can say more than a lot I can say

Well said SarkarRaj, i am adding one more point here. Mother Tongue is must and rest are optional according to necessities...

What i can conclude myself here is Indian bureaucrats and Politicians purely lagging adninistrative skills in past and present times. The real motive of making HINDI as compulsory in 1960's is to make most of the Indians comfortable. I strongly appreciate that. But our administarators at that time forgetten that Indians bounded by the theme "India is a land of unity in Diversity" not "land of unity in Hindi". So at 1960's if administartors taken a policy like all Indian should learn a 3rd language apart from English and their Mother tongue means there we would expect a chance for good cultural mixture between all Indians irrespective of language. If it would had happen we may expect a Win-Win situation. Because most would have prefered Hindi as 3rd language and my fellow Hindi speaking brothers would had a chance to learn other beautiful languages and would have knew what actaully real India is bound to.

Also told by Anna that you don't need a large and a small door to let a dog and cat in, you
just need one large door meaning one english is good for connecting all people.
It is also unfair to burden Tamils to learn three languages while Hindi belt can just live with
Hindi as the judge says a number of them don't speak English.

Another statement by the then CM Annadurai is also learning two languages english and
Hindi for communication is like making a large and small doors for a dog and cat to go out of
the house when one large door(English) can do that job. Further honourable judges choice
of word 'should' is imposing and 'may' is providing choice- for your consideration with
respect.

Looks like Tamils are rational & cool about the issue and the response
from the author a bit too emotional and hyper.It's not wise to make
mountains out of mole hills.Tamils are wise,mature and intelligent to
decide for themselves.

Please inform me, do the children in UP or Bihar learn three languages
from primary level? Hindi, English and another language, if not why
the children in other states like Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka should
learn English, Hindi and Tamil (or Malayalam, or Kannada). Have you
understood the difficulties when the parents are transferred from one
state to another? The attitude of northerners to impose Hindi had the
repercussion in Tamilnadu and the sufferers are the ordinary people.
Fanaticism in all aspects must be curtailed. Today English is the
universal link language all over India.

I am a Tamil living in Europe for the past 4 years. I do not understand the author's preference towards Hindi, since this language does not at all display the culture and heritage of India. I have heard North Indians speaking Hindi in Buses and trams and trains and have observed that they use about 20-30% English words in one Hindi sentence! This is the usual trend today, which is also popularised in Bollywood movies. So, why learn this language, which itself uses so many foreign words to be understood? I wonder rather communicate in English or my mother tongue!

Precisely because of the rational thinking, people in the south have rejected the need for learning Hindi - They could learn a global language like English yet retain their classical language and its heritage. We do not wish homogenisation by way learning Hindi (however subtle you may implore). Mr. Katju, we reject your arguments totally.

There is nothing wrong in learning a new language. But to advise what language people should learn is not needed. I am from Karnataka and need only Kannada and English. Similarly people elsewhere will decide what they wil learn which will be language of the state + English + language of the state they migrate to in case needed. Time has come to shun nonsense of national language. When the Gujarat High Court has clearly said India has no national language how can a judge openly say something that contradicts the verdict of the court. India has no national language and that nonsense should stop. all languages are the same and all Indians are the same. The people are intelligent enough to choose what language they want to learn. In fact it's time people are left on their own instead of giving free useless advice.

I agree with Mr.Katju. I am neither from Hindi heartland nor from TamilNadu .I am from Odisha. Thanks to Hindi Channels ,I have a decent Hindi knowledge along with English and my native language. I stayed over 2 years in Gujurat , didn't face any problem.Hindi saved me . Now living in Pune and Here also Hindi is my savior .I had two tamil friends in Gujuart ,believe me one of them personally requested me to teach him some basics.Those who are comparing languages and very adamant of learning English , they should visit countries like Korea, japan,china and other EU countries.

i have been working in gulf countries for the past five years.I have
seen people from Pakistan and Bangladesh speak Hindi.In gulf countries,
even few locals speak Hindi for better communication with people from
Andhra,Kerala and Karnataka.People from these states have certain
advantage than their counterparts from Tamilnadu in Gulf countries
because of their ability to speak Hindi.

Pray, what does Mr Katju advocate when he says "learn" Hindi. Is it to speak only or to read and write? The speak only requirement is fully understood as a means of communicating with the local people, to promote better understanding and assimilation, as well as for business. But then this is true for any region, any language. That I should learn Kananda, if I live in Bangalore has a sound basis.

But clearly, this is need based and the way to learn to speak the local language is not neccesarily a class room. I have heard how North Indians in Bangalore, involved in trade and professions have learnt to speak Kannada - through the local FM stations, listening to Kannada conversations and songs!

So, Mr Katju, must clearly specify whether he advocates that all of us learn Hindi as academic pursuit (beginning with schools) or informally as per our need. Also, I would like him to admit that it is as difficult for a Tamilian like me learn Hindi as it is the other way round.

we are not doing disservice to Tamil by learning Hindi.
look at the scenario in Tamil movies & TV channels. How many English words have come up. They are doing disservice to Tamil.Can any person speak 10 sentence in Tamil without using English words. Even people without school education, vendors .. use English words..mobile, fan, switch......The real danger to Tamil is from mixing English words and not Hindi. we have to translate great works in other languages to Tamil. That way Tamil will grow.
All the Hindi haters-what have they done for Tamil`s growth? All Tamil lovers -so you know all the kurals by heart?What have you done. Can you speak only in Tamil without using english words- when you go to shop for new mobile do you ask for Kaipeesi? minvisiri?

Sep 14 is not only Hindi divas but the day when many other languages were also accepted as national languages of India.There is as such no particular national language for India.Hindi and English are official languages.Pure hindi as such is not spoken in the so called hindi belt also.The text book hindi comes in hindi films only.
A language should be learned if there is use in learning that or you love languages.People who dont want to speak English for the hatred of foreigners shoud wear Indian make dress and avoid going to international restaurant chains as well.Prove your nationality by your contribution to the country and not by language.
South Indians are mocked for not knowing hindi.Many of the North Indians dont even know that South has 4 different states and languages.I am not against hindi and I speak the language very well also.Let a language of a different region be taught in the hindi belt regions also.This will promote national integrity.

This is a simple practical suggestion by a man who holds a high enough post to make an appeal to the people of the land he lives in. To “take it or live it” should be a personal choice but maligning the writer’s intention with unwanted comments, only shows low tolerance to alternate viewpoints.

The problem is that very few are left in India who think rationally! Many comments herein corroborate it. We just need to wait for people to become rational as they will have to, to meet their needs for survival in the fast-changing world. One point that arises out of my personal experience is that, in today's competitive world, some people are not comfortable seeing others learn their language, as it helps them communicate with their same-language colleagues more freely in presence of different-language colleagues. Despite my desire to learn South Indian languages, I could not learn any. And this, I consider as the greatest failure of my life.

It is rightly said that Hindi is national language as it have much
larger reach as compared to other regional languages. Whole matter of
debate is acceptance of Hindi by Tamils. In that regard, our
constitution clearly give freedom to an individual to accept according
to his own judgement. After analyzing the benefits, that a man get
after learning Hindi, it can be said it will be a lot easier for that
person to communicate with any localite in many parts of India without
use of any english word except "hello". Instead of seeing whole issue
as invasion of national language over a minor local language, i would
say that Introduction of Hindi in south Indian States will open a lot
of opportunities for people of that states as well as other states,
which lead to much more favorable environment for Indian growth.

Truly speaking i heartily respect tamil, telugu, kannada and all the south indian languages and i condemn in the loudest terms any attempt to impose any language on anyone. The attempt to forcefully has created so much of hatred against hindi in the south indian states. and that hatred has ultimately cost the south indians and the country as a whole. Because south indians are not taught hindi in primary schools, there is a naturally tendency in them to move abroad for careers. If they had known hindi, there is a lot more chance that they might've chosen to have there career in india only. and obviously its very good for a person to know a language which more than 50% of his country's population communicates in.

All that the Author wants is to remove the 'anti-hindi' mentality from some Tamilians. At no point he wanted one language to be made a compulsion or anything else. I can understand why he specifically pointed out this to Tamilians. I am a hindi speaking guy living in South India for around 7 years. I have come across people from Andhra, Karnataka (where i live), Kerela but it is only in Tamil nadu that i found a distinct, undeniable anti-hindi mentality. Why is that true? Perhaps the 60s anti-hindi movement is responsible. This Hindi-Tamil enmity is a creation of politics. Personally i have many tamil friends. Thousands of yrs ago there was no Hindi and no Tamil, thousands of yrs from now, there wont be any Hindi or Tamil. Languages are just means of communication.

No one need to dictate anybody to learn the language. In Tamilnadu Hindi prachar sabha is very active. And no restrictions laid on students to learn hindi. Also Hindi alone don't bring the enlightenment. I know tamilians who speak good hindi after placed in north india for short time meantime time i know scores of south india who doesn't even bother to pronounce tamil names wrongly after living for years in chennai.South indians learn tamil,telugu,kannada,malayalam at ease. Likewise for north indians its easy to learn hindi as root words are same.

its a very important thing that should be taken in account . people
of tamil nadu are kept like this for political advantage of some
party. even i am having lot of colleges from tamil nadu who realize
the mistake of not knowing hindi,when they got to work in other part
of country.

this mean tamil is not in back of hindi knowing a language is as much
good.

even the politicians who are against hindi know hindi very well and
there wards are grown in a well established school from there even
they learn french. ultimate loosers are common man ,


"think and realize"

Told BY Annadurai:
IF Majority number of peoples is the only concern,
Why to choose TIGER as national animal when crows, rat,etc are in majority,...
Anyway outside INDIA to survive u need to learn English, why to learn Hindi here and learn English for outside world.

Every Indian must consider & keep language simply as communication instrument removing fencing of religion and obligations that has been felt by Indians so long , respect every language equally .

We all are living in India - Hindustan ,show unity - No community should try to show their individual appearance & boundaries .

The trouble with Hindi, as also with many other Indian languages, is the huge difference between spoken and written (not necessarily meaning "literary" in its absolute sense) versions. The difference is much less with English. Hindi taught in schools in the non-Hindi states is almost invariably the written variety, or even worse - Hindi syllabus in our "Intermediate" course in "Madras" province, in 1952, included Kabir ke Dohe and Tulsidas ke Dohe. Naturally, when I went to Delhi in 1956, I could not even give directions to the Taxi driver. It's another matter, of course, that "Hindi" in Delhi is significantly different from Hindi even in Mumbai.

Actually, I studied in a school/college in a town in Malabar, and our Hindi teacher, being a Malayalee, used to pronounce "ng" etc. like in Malayalam, i.e., nasally, without the guttural component, Only if Hindi is STANDARDIZED for being taught throughout India - like "received" English - will it serve as a link language.

I am of opinion that if we know as many languages as possible then it's good for us. But imposing others' languages is barbarious and autocratic.I personally feel that every Tamilian should be well versed in English as we speak our mother tongue, simply because it's difficult for us to survive if we go outside of our motherland or even to survive in our land. At the same time I am against if we speaks in English mixed tamil or even in pure English among ourselves. Every Indian should learn their mother tongue and Tamil people should learn English on top of mother tongue, a third language should be left optional. But for non tamilians living in Tamilnadu there should be an option to learn their mother tongue and Tamil people can learn either Mandarin, germany,japanese or even Hindi in that third language option. I personally feel learning other eurpoean language would be of more beneficial than learning Hindi.First let us be an expert in English than we will learn Hindi.

Markandey Katju's remarks need correction. Tamilis not a Regional Language. Tamil is an International Language and spoken in Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, Fiji, Mauritius, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada and Europe. Second, many Hindi belt areas peopel who migrated to English speaking countries (Australia, NZ< Canada, USA, UK) feel that they made a mistake of ignoring English. Third, Tamil, the longest living langauge, is a native language of Indian sub-continent where is hindi is considered Indo-Aryan. Many Hindi words have similarity with German, Russians, persian and so on.

Let the people decide what they to learn. National Political parties lost their support from Tamil Nadu since 1965 (after Hindi imposition and agitation).

Justice Katju has rightly observed that Hindi should not be 'imposed' on anyone. However, Tamilians should not oppose Hindi for the sake of opposing. Hindi is a beautiful language & has a richness of its own. India is the only nation in the world having so many languages & diverse cultures - all of them unique at their own level, a matter of pride for all of us. If Tamilians can enjoy Hindi movies, what prevents them from learning Hindi ? When Justice Katju can quote from the Thirukkural, Silappathikaram, Manimelalai, Kambar's Ramayanam & Mahakavi Bharathiyar's poems, why can't Tamilians learn Hindi & read the immortal works of Premchand, Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, Harivansh Rai Bachchhan, Suryakant Tripathi Nirala etc. ? I can say with pride that apart from my mother tongue Tamil, I know Hindi, English, Bengali, Urdu etc. The Thirukkural says, "Knowledge is an inner fortress which even enemies can't destroy." The sooner we understand, the better for, knowledge never goes a waste.

Lets accept the fact that the person who said is not a politician. When a well
educated person explains things with various example and advices, we should be
taking it. Ultimately - he is not at loss - whether anyone from Tamil Nadu learn hindi
or not.

Very simple friends.
If you like to have global opportunities-> Learn English.
If you like to have national opportunities-> Learn Hindi.
If you like to have local opportunities-> Learn local language.
and if you don't like to have any opportunities -> Don't learn.
Where is the compulsion yaar?

The arguments in this article to support learning Hindi are spurious at best.

In most parts of India, you can get along with some kind of English, at least people understand some kind of butler English thanks to spread of English even in Hindi words. So for basic communication, English does the job.

Learning Hindi does not necessarily lead to better communication as South Indians speak with a slang when communicating in Hindi which North Indians cannot understand and they also mock it.


As for economic arguments, the migration is mostly from north to south in search of economic opportunities and not vice versa. So should'nt people from the North learn South Indian languages and not the other way around.

I believe Mr. Katju is rational man but being judge of the Supreme
Court he should not have made this technical error of claiming Hindi as
national language. Also, I feel politicians in Tamil Nadu are exploiting
socio-cultural sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu. Look this Sri
Lanka issue, spreading hatred towards people from our neighboring
country wont solve the issue. Gandhiji once said, 'Intolerance is also a
form of violence. It is obstacle to democratic spirit'.

I don't know why people see learning a third language as a burden. I have been working in TN for past 4-5 months and started learning Tamil since then. I know that learning Tamil would be beneficial for me not only in TN but in all other places where it is spoken and understood. In fact, I feel handicapped when i don't completely understand the language which is spoken by people around me. It is this curiosity and urge that i look forward to learn as many languages as possible. I appeal to all to learn as many languages as possible. It'll help you surely. And please stop being emotional in matters of languages. Languages are tools created by man for communication. The more languages you learn, the more you will benefit by able to understand and express to more number of people. Let me give an analogy, suppose you can cook Indian cuisine and you get an opportunity to learn cooking continental or chinese cusines; wouldn't that be great that you go for them ? Same goes for languages.

We reject your proposal.
I have never felt the need to learn hindi even after studying in CBSE school where I had hindi for 5 years as 3rd language.

I wish to point out that hindi doesn't reflect the rich history of our country, for a country boasting 5000 years of history having a language that is as young as hindi will only be a cruel irony.

Moreover the reason that hindi is most widely spoken doesn't make sense , do i have to remind you that our national animal and bird can't boast of huge population.

Language is an emotional and cultural identity of a person. The argument
that Hindi is more prevalent than Tamil and tamilians should learn hindi
is absurd. If all of India need to embrace Hindi what about the rich
diversity of India and its culture.
If a language dies the culture dies. Already Hindi is affecting other
languages of India. Let every language have its own space.There is no
need to do any Math on this.

Learning any language is good.I don't agree Hindi as a link language.Learning local language is must.Hindi speaking ppl should learn or attempt to learn the regional language. if necessary.I strongly feel Learning other language should be based out of necessity.It is their personal choice

I completely agree with Mr. Katju.I don'nt understand why do people
stand so strongly just to oppose hindi.Why do they have a problem in
learning a language which is spoken in a major part of the country
rather than switching to a completely alien language.As already
mentioned by the writer that learning hindi is not a compulsion and
its obviously up to the person to decide,but he/she can really see the
benefits of learning hindi if he moves out of his/her home state.It
really helps you to mingle with other people if you speak in hindi
rather than in english.

Well Justice Katju, your logic inherently implies Tamilians
living/traveling outside Tamil Nadu have to learn Hindi, and that
suggestion is welcome. But strange that you don't suggest that Non-
Tamils in TN should pick up Tamil. It goes without saying that locals
have to be courteous to people who can't speak the local tongue, but it
is equally courteous of people from outside to pick up the local tongue
instead of using that bullying argument of "we are more in
number"......Well, something doesn't become right just because many
people want to do it? Does it?

I find the arguments totally amusing. The point is very simple - if I need to learn Hindi, I will learn it. Why should anyone prescribe what I should do to survive? Nobody is prescribing a prohibition against any language, not just Hindi! It is the imposition - hard or soft - that is facing the flak. Tomorrow if I need to learn Swahili to earn my livelihood, I will do it. Mr Katju is moving away from the point - what is so holy about Hindi? If I move to a place, where I can survive only with Hindi, I will learn it AT THAT TIME! Tomorrow I may move to France, so I can say that I should know French as well. It will be better if Katju moves away from availability bias.

All languages are like different flowers in a graden. I am proud my Indian graden is so beautiful with hundreds of colors. If the garden is named after one particular flower for identify, that does not take away fragrance of other flowers.

Sir,
I agree with your views. We should learn the most widely spoken language in our country, at least to speak, if not read and write. I learnt Hindi because my father felt that I should learn Hindi to have more mobility in our occupation. This was all 20 years back when I was in school and college. Last 20 years I am in Bangalore and I have learnt to speak and understand Kannada. I can't read or write in Kannada as I didn't have the need to do that as Bangalore is cosmopolitan where people can speak Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, English. The locals Kannadigas are tolerant and appreciate if you at least attempt to speak. I know so many Hindi/North Indians (non-business people) not learning the local language and preferring to speak only in Hindi. A few of them have been for several years but still can't speak a line of the local language. This is not addressed in your article.Perhaps it is time to write an article highlighting this to native Hindi speakers?Let us be fair to all sides. Regards

Think the author is not aware of the reality. He says English is the link language only for elite. However, Hindi is also a link only for elite and spoken only in the cities where English is equally handy.

I had been to Pune and not a single sole there speaks hindi. All of them speak only Marathi. Same is the case in Gujarat, Bihar and Bengal.

The author also need to understand that English is spoken through out the world and he should reserve his wordly advise to the north indians and make them learn English.

It is a very commendable argument sir,We should not forget that how
important Hindi is especially for strengthening our unity and
integrity.As well said by you Hindi is spoken by majority of people in
India As par North India concerned it is spoken by probably all people
and in South also In Maharastra,karnatka,kerla we could find if not
half then by 1/4 it is known and understand ,I am a Law student and
preparing for judiciary so i know the importance of hindi in lower
courts specially in UP and Bihar most of the work is done in hindi so
knowing good hindi is important for us.I am not condemning the other
language Knowing other language is good I am fond of learning language
and right now i am learning Bengali and especially where English is
concern if you do not know it you can not do more in your literary
life If you are a Lawyer or a Docter or any other professional.
But we have to support Hindi for one nation thought.

Learning a language is always an advantageous enhancement of
personality. Learning Hindi is utmost important due to its widespread
presence in northern India. This however shall not belittle Tamil as a
regional language. To me, it is an international language where the
people of Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, and to a lesser extent
French and Canadian speaks and live with it in their everyday lives.
The linguistic nationalism is an emotive aspect which does not warrant
anyone’s suggestion to learn. The life’s compulsion makes one to
learn. Because it is historically an emotional issue to discuss.

In my view there should be two Indian languages (excluding English, it's taught anyway in every school) in curriculam. I am not saying one should master both the languages but s/he should able to atleast understand. It will not only make a student appreciate other lanagues of India but also will increase mutual understanding and help bridge the gaps. Its always a better position to be a multilingual person

Learning local language for the communication with local people MUST.
My mother tongue is Kannada.
1.If I am in Delhi, Bhopal, Lucknow or Patna without any iota of doubt i will communicate with them in Hindi, because they know Hindi & its their mother tongue. I don't expect them to speak with me in Kannada.
2.Why Hindi speaking people expect others to speak in Hindi even if the place is non-Hindi area. This is a real problem.

Learning and speaking in Hindi is not a problem but this expectation, which is there by DEFAULT is the big problem, because of this Hindi speaking people feel superior than non-Hindi speaking people & they ignore them.

Coming back to Tamil (I know Tamil :-)), guess what whole politics there revolves around language, they oppose anything which is non Tamil, nothing specific to Hindi! so because this they find it difficult when the go out from Tamil Nadu.

I am an Indian. My mother tongue being Tamil, I do know Hindi and a few other languages. My appeal is that, while south Indians learn Hindi which is quite acceptable to me. Why not north Indians learn a Dravidian (South Indian) language? Is it that wrong for North Indians to do so? When it comes to Tamil, it is the oldest continuously surviving language of India, so why not take up initiative to teach it and other languages like Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam in North India. One may get exposure to a variety.

I was waiting that someone of your stature should address the language issue. As long as one is a frog in the well it is enough to be monolingual. But for the ones who travel across the country and all over the world, language is an asset. When I was sixteen our passions were unduly inflamed when Hindi was imposed, and as result I shunned this language. In the seventies when I went to Hyderabad, Delhi, Bombay and Calcutta for the first time I regretted my mistake. If only I had learned Hindi I would not have had that kind of a trouble in another state. My work demanded that I should visit all the capital cities of India and you can imagine my difficulty. Then my son had to visit a few different countries in Europe. He could not have managed only with English. Since he is fluent in French and German and also Spanish he could interact with people of all nations easily. The once big world is shrinking today. I would like to join with Mr. Katju in reiterating that linguistic skill will take our children far and wide and help them to be useful vessels to make their contribution to the betterment of people of all nations. Sir, ignorance, fanaticism and illiteracy are formidable challenges in our country just like in many other nations. Therefore knowledgeable ones like you must keep on striving against the odds. We will stand with you sir. Thank you once again for your contribution.

I am a saddened to read a lot of knee-jerk comments in response to a
very sensible article. When and where did the author suggest imposing
Hindi on anyone? He categorically states that one should learn it if
it makes sense for them. Else don't bother.

Many of commentators who suggest that learning English should be
enough to use as a link language are same the ones who can not
construct a coherent sentence in English.

How can learning any new language be a bad thing? It can only be
helpful. And if the argument does not sound good to you, forget about
it.

No one is trying to impose anything.

If Tamilians go to North India to make a living, by the same logic, North Indians would go to TN to make a living. Should anyone ask North Indians to learn a South Indian language (not compulsory though).
CJI, Mr.Katju learned Tamil; but did he learn it in school? Likewise anyone working in other states shall be found speaking the local language. Mr. Katju could have found some North Indian speaking over phone in Tamil. Such examples cannot influence to make policies. I know of a doctor in Hyderabad telling a North Indian that he had to learn Hindi to treat North Indians since they won’t learn Telugu.Personal example of South Indian having North Indian friends in USA doesn’t make sense in this context. He could have kind of selected his friends group. What if there were only say, Spanish people around.
Language is only a medium to communicates with others. Since it is not known where in future one would go for a living, it is not necessary to learn any extra language at school.

This was a very reasonable article and i would like to implore the
readers to assess the necessity of learning hindi.I feel that language
is foremost a medium of communication and understanding.English is
necessary on account of it's access to a vast knowledge base and it's
being a global language.though i am not acquainted with majority of
country's masses,i would still believe that hindi is the only
language which would help bring unity and understanding in
communication amongst us.it's not because i already know hindi or it
may be a better language.it is so because almost half of the country's
population already speaks it and while conversing with someone of
different community,they almost always use hindi.so,to stay connected
and be contemporaneous in this age,i would say,hindi is a basic
must.at least in our country,it would be.

Mr. Katju makes many valid points, but Hindi IS being imposed upon us in many subtle ways and some not so subtle ways. Why is September 14th declared "Hindi Diwas"? If all languages are indeed equal, why aren't there a "Kannada Dhina" or "Thamizh dhinam" and a host of others as well? Go into any BSNL office and you will see a board encouraging us to learn one Hindi word a day. What is this BUT imposition?

It is not the language, but the quality of communication that comes through that defines how we conduct business or education. Hindi has its place, but when a high quality investment has been made by many people in their native languages, we shouldn't grow Hindi just because it is the most widespread in usage. By this logic the crow should be the national bird, not the peacock.

Since there is NO "national language" in the Constitution, why aren't politicians and people in the media using the term being arrested for sedition? Advise them too, Mr. Katju!

It is FACTUALLY WRONG to call Hindi the National Language. Justice Katju have considered only very few aspects of Language to recommend Tamils to learn Hindi. He should have considered the rich heritage of various languages in India and find out where does Hindi stand in its richness of Heritage. But whatever he has written is true and pure rational . Tamil nadu needs to think of better ways to teach its language among new generation so they excel in their rich language and also continue to develop their state in this globalised world.

I have a great respect for Justice Markandey Katju, but he has twisted two facts for arguments favoring Hindi.
1. Hindi is not national language
2. Hindi and Urdu languages are not the same thought some common words available in these languages.

Hindi agitation of 1965 in Tamilnadu, was basically against Hindi
imposition and for continuance of English. Central government as
usual, impose this in Central government offices, railways, Postal and
so on. Non Hindi people thought they were in a disadvantageous
position. Government was adament. Tamil parties made use of this and
the rest is History. But somehow, forgetting the practical aspect, we
behave as if we are Hindi haters. Learning Hindi has it's own
advantageous in moving, managing in any other state outside - atleast
from this angle we have to see. Even party leaders, who oppose Hindi,
know some Hindi and they find it useful. Things being so for common
man it is better. People learn, Russian, French and so on even in
India. Even Chinese are learning Hindi for conducting business.

I want to stress that the primary objective should be to learn our mother tongue. For example I am a Telugu person who studied in the state Capital Hyderabad, and yet Telugu was not part of the curriculum during 80% of the schooling years and moreover the rest 20% was optional between Telugu and Sanskrit. Shouldn't we at least make an effort to ensure that all the schools in a state ( cbse, icse, state or anything else) at least provide an option to teach the regional language. Also as far as the people in the non-hindi speaking states are concerned, if the suggestion for the non-hindi speaking persons in these states is to learn hindi then I would suggest the non-regional language speaking people who wish to have a longer stint in these states, to learn the regional language.

Respected Mr Katju - I loved your article and completely accept to
your thoughts. I am a proper tamil ponnu, born and brought up in
Madras and have moved to Delhi last year due to my marriage.

I am excited to learn Hindi and be a part of the unique culture, and
am thoroughly enjoying it!

I think irrespective of any regional language, every Indian should
atleast make an attempt to learn our National language - HINDI.

You never know when it will come handy!

Also it is important to have pride on one's own heritage, and for that tamilians having pride on Tamil as a great language is totally justified.However, it is also important to develop pride on one's national heritage which is the cultural, social and linguistic heritage of the nation to remain united. A bigger nation is a boon for development and progress of the society.Tamilnadu today is one of the rich states ; one of the reasons besides many, is that it is part of India and enjoys the rich national resources spread over this large nation.This is to point out that size does matters in today's circumstances in the world. English should not be projected as link language for simple reason that it is a foreign language and it does not help to develop pride on regional and national heritage. Hindi as a link language and as national language makes sense as explained by Mr. Katju. Also, it is closest to Sanskrit our treasure of national ancient philosophy and knowledge.

Yes 100 % agreed. Live like Roman when you are in Rome.

Completely agree. I don't like the Hindi chauvinists nor the Tamil
chauvinists. If your kid learns Hindi it will help him/her. Period.

I agree with Justice Katju: knowing Hindi does have great
utility. I studied Hindi as a third language in school and I have
found it invaluable when I travel anywhere within India, outside
Tamil Nadu. Because of politics and jingoism, there are some
tamils who react defensively to this suggestion with - "Why
should we learn Hindi? Why don't the people up north learn
Tamil?" I think Justice Katju's article answers this "why?"
question quite convincingly.
I would like to add that one need not know all languages to the
same level. I believe that it is important to know one's own
local language(tamil, in my case) to the level of being able to
appreciate the literature and poetry, without which we cannot
really hope to understand our culture at any meaningful depth.
Competency in English too is valuable for obvious reasons. But I
think that the average tamil only needs to know enough Hindi to
hold simple conversations and watch SRK movies.

The Hindu and Mr Katju are trying to manufacture a controversy where there is none. There are valid arguments for encouraging a local language and the need for a link language. The soft argument that Mr Katju is making is a usually a precursor for a harder push by other people. Now, consider the example of Europe, there are several languages which define a country, which are spoken by fewer people than most major Indian languages. Finnish for example is spoken in a country of 5 million, nobody tries to make an argument that in support of European integrity everybody be forced to use French or German or English. Finns automatically switch to English when they are conversing with non Finnish people. So claiming that Tamil or Kannada or Telugu is spoken by "only" 70 million people, is absurd. Humans are capable of using several languages, when exposed to them - we can default to the most convenient link language as required in a specific situation. This cannot be decreed or forced by law.

Why are we reliving a debate that's been done and dusted?

Mr Katju, I'd like to submit Exhibit A: Migration patterns to and from
Tamil Nadu. If anything this points to the need of people in Central
and Eastern India learning Tamil. Not vice-versa.

The need for a language will be decided at as local a level as
possible. So I'd think parents, schools and local governments decide
that -- not some ignorant retired judge who claims to speak for a
nation state in its entirety. Especially when the said nation state is
as complex as India.

For historical and social reasons, Don't wish to learn that so-called national language imposed on people.
Also, Your statement Tamil is only spoken in Tamil Nadu is suppressing the facts (Don't try to hide elephant behind an ant).
Tamil is spoken very widely across the globe. For ex., Sri-Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore has Tamil as one of it's language.
I would appeal once again to consider the suggestion that all Indians should learn Tamil. The suggestion DOES make sense, Don't reject it.

In CBSE schools, students learn in English medium. They learn one other
language with limited choice.In Tamilnadu, the second language can be
Tamil or Hindi or Sanskrit or French etc. Thus the common language is
English. Official language/s is English and Hindi at the center. As
regards National language is concerned, Hindi is one of many. Your claim
that Hindi is spoken by majority denies the fact that Bengalis speak
Bengali, Gujaratis speak Gujarati, Maharashtrians speak Marathi and so
on. Why at all single out a single language as national?

The authors arguments make sense. He is only asking to learn Hindi from
a practical point of view. I am from Andhra Pradesh and i learnt Hindi
from 1st class.I have never gone to Northern India myself, but living in
the US with people from the north, i have never felt out of
place.Speaking in Hindi has helped me socialize and develop a sense of camaraderie with my room mates. Besides, even in the US, from my
experience, you don't speak in English with your desi friends most of
the times.

Good advice by Sri.Markandeya Khatju.
Especially for students. The onus is on the State Governments to act and
provide the children with the opportunity. More so in Govt. schools. The
Hindi teachers were hounded out in 1965 and the TN students had to pay
the price. Its time to atone for that!

Very candid views on the issue. The youth and student community in
Tamilnadu should not allow themselves to be swayed by the chauvinistic
cries made by narrow minded politicians, especially of the Dravidian
parties of the state. Youngsters of this state are capable of learning
any language with ease.

Excellent Advice by Justice Markandey Katju.All right thinking people of
Tamilnadu should learn Hindi and facilitate their children to learn
Hindi,alonwith Tamil.It is hightime the politicians also
realised the futility of their anti people(hindi)policy

I feel any person who goes to other states for education or job should
learn the local language. That way, both the problem of preserving the
mother tongue and the need for link language will be taken care of.

A Good Thought.I would also like to add that learning Hindi especially by people in Tourism and Development will help pulling many people from states for a tour to Tamil Nadu thereby not only boosting our state economy and also helping Tamil Nadu tourism on a global footprint.

Good article. I completely agree with the author. No language should be imposed in others and nobody should be barred from learning a language of their interest.

Katju has made a great suggestion not for depreciating Tamil peoples, but to increase the standard of living. If tamilians learn hindi, it is only an added advantage for them to make better business all over india. But if Tamilian still rely on their language to curse hindi. Let them suffer. I am frustrated tamilian who do know hindi and is struggling to cope up in the non tamil speaking state.

My mother tongue is kannada, but born and brought up in chennai, so i know tamil. When i started working in Mumbai, I had a tough time to deal with hindi, but later I was posted at Kakinada. I learnt telugu easily but why my other hindi speaking colleagues did not learn telugu? At the age of 28 suddenly learning something new is incredebly tough, still telugu and kannada have a common script, so i could learn, similarly bengali gujarati punjabi have a similar script which makes north indians to learn hindi easily. If learning telugu or tamil is difficult for north indians, its the same dificulty we south indians face learning hindi

Very sensible and practical. There need be no compulsion , but the
atmosphere you work and live , it will be convenient. Every state wants
its Language to be learnt and making compulsory in schools. A three
language formula is a decent exercise. There is no compulsion to learn
French,German,Japanese( of late, some Chinese. But there are many
people learning from various institutes, considering their plans in life
I am all for it. I am conversant in Teleugu,Bengali, Kiswahili in
addition to my pride of Tamil and English.

Besides all these obvious reasons, there are also other less evident
but not less significant reasons which we attribute to heart, soul and
dignity of the people. Even today Hindi media grossly fails to tell
stories and perspectives of non hindi states. Also, if a generation of
Tamils or Malayalees or Kannadigars or Telugu who cannot read their
earlier literatures in the original form and histories in their own
perspectives, they will start beliving that they never had any good
past. This will lead to a gaps in their self respect and will lead to
over dependence and subordination to Hindi speaking people and
literature. A better solution will be to have one of the other
languages of India learned by all students across India otehr than
their mother tongue. That will lead to better national platform.

A very good rationale from a respectful judge.

As he says, there are 1:15 Hindi-Tamil ratio; but it does not mean, all Hindi people are coming and settling in Tamil Nadu, or all Tamilians are settling in North India.

The best solution would be, every state capital should have a local language school, where in, anyone who is settling in that state, can go and learn the local language free of cost. It must be made mandatory for the central government employees to go through these schools, so that, they can serve the locals better.

Three languages are bad both mentally and environmentally.. These days, we are cutting three trees because of these three languages, that is being imposed on the people. And if there is only one linking language and the mother tongue, I think, we can save one out of three trees.

And his argument that, "more Hindi speakers" is the only criteria, then, let the UN impose Chinese across the world, because, Chinese is spoken by almost 1.2 billion people.

Hindi if it needs to become national mediumm it should represent all
its culture's "genius, the forms, style and expressions" as mentioned
in Article 351 of Indian Constitution. It would have to contain all
the existing literature spread over various languages properly
translated by its original people without losing its essence and the
feelings these works produced in the same way it did in its original
language. This is very close to impossible, since we cannot have
another Tagore or Thyagarajan or Chithiratirunal or Thiruvalluvar or
Ezhuthachn re-writing their original works in Hindi. An attempt can be
made by promoting academic research to see how much of these
significant works can be represented in Hindi. Even an attempt for
this would need a large list of new words added to the official Hindi
dictionary as required by each of the Indian languages, along with
dropping of unsustainable grammatical rules in Hindi as genders for
objects etc. Still many things will remain unresolved.

A Hindi which is rigidly bound to its native speaker's usage "form,
style and expressions"; people of non-native speaking regions will not
just be repeatedly ridiculed in public by its native speakers for
their mother tongue influence, but also will face an inability to
express their inner emotions and needs in official communications;
where these are needed to be expressed the most. This would defeat the
democratic process we as a nation is attempting to bring about. I
myself find writing in Hindi extremely tiresome, even ignoring the
language part of it. Also, Tamils and Bengalis find it difficult to
pronounce some sounds in current standard Hindi. If Hindi has to
become a national language these irritants will have to officially go.
But, if you remove these 'facilities' from Hindi, the past literature
in Hindi itself may not be fully representable. Also, there are many
languages which have more such features than even standard Hindi can
afford. ex. Malayalam.

I officially started learning Hindi at the age of 10 and did courses
till my 10th standard. I watched a lot of DoorDarshan's national news
and other programs. I listened to perhaps more Bollywood songs than
Hollywood or Malayalam, because of imposed availability through media.
I did decently well among my peers and even secured 46/50 in my 10th
board examination for Hindi. After that I lived in Mumbai for a year,
Rajasthan for 1.5 years, Bangalore for 0.5 years and now 2 years in
Kanpur. All these times I was regularly conversing in Hindi. But, even
today when I see a notice published in Hindi I spend at least one
minute per line to read it. Worse is if I have to write. I, think
today I cannot complete even one sentence without a grammar mistake.
Colloquial usages and most of the less common words are no more
familiar to me than French or Greek. The gender system in Hindi is the
worst obstacle for me. Even today when I speak Hindi my friends get to
correct my grammar now and then.

While,appreciating the tone of the article that Hindi should not be
made compulsory in Tamil Nadu or for that matter any other non Hindi
State,why dont we simultaneously ask Hindi belt to learn any other
language of India also.It may not necessarily be South Indian
languages like Tamil,Telugu,Kannada or Malayalam.It may be even
Bengali,Assamese or Gujarati or any other language for that matter.

I,having worked in North India right at the beginning of my
career,know that its difficult to survive there without Hindi.Yet,it
doesnt mean that one has to learn it to go to North. I learnt my Hindi
when i was working there in the north and even went up to the extent
of knowing how to read and write Punjabi when i was working in
Ludhiana.The anti-hindi attitude was even present in Punjab when an
elderly punjabi gentleman chided me when i talked to him in Hindi. He
told me, "please learn Punjabi if you want to do business in Punjab".

The message was clear to me.

A very sensible argument. Tamil Politicians have unnecessarily made it very difficult
for all Tamilians - job seekers as well as businessmen by taking an extreme position
and making learning Hindi very difficult in Tamilnad. While English is the global
language if you will have to succeed in any globalised business, like IT, in all Indian
context Hindi is very helpful. My stint in Delhi forced me to learn Hindi and it has
made a huge difference after that wherever I moved to in India. Let us be practical
and do not create a great handicap for our children. Every child from Kerala,
Karnataka and AP are better equipped with some workable Hindi language skills
while Tamil children are denied this and they have a handicap later in life.

Sorry, we reject it.

We can't spend time and resource to learn another language, rather we focus in science,maths, history and other subjects. We are not against any language. We learn a language when we need it. We learn Hindi if we need to live in Hindi speaking belt.

Pls don't force us.

Well said sir! I support your views as well. Communication is key, and to have one common language is the way to go. If anything, language politics is what needs to be abolished.

Like the examples you've mentioned, I know many Tamilian colleagues and friends who accept it was a mistake not to learn Hindi, especially in this age where one has to leave their native state in search of jobs. We should not limit ourselves (or our children for that matter) to our native language, because in doing so we end up limiting their chances of success in their future. Children do learn our language as they grow up. What they need is an exposure to other languages.

I am a Kannadiga living in Hyderabad and have had no problems with communicating, and also being given a chance to learn Telugu. And if not for Hindi, my life here would have been very tough. And I appreciate the fact that I'm treated equally.

In the end, there should be one common language that we can communicate throughout India.

learning hindi in TN is acceptable but if its used only in hindi
belt not in TN. is this acceptable?

Woah! This man talks immense sense ! One always sees Judges, even former Judges, strutting around prefixing a pompous "caste title" of "Justice" etc etc to their name. Many do this in their private lives and also when they are not performing official juridical roles. Katju is refreshingly different, he just calls himself "Mr Katju". I applaud the man for what he is. Mother India needs more men like him.

Mr.Markandeya Kadju's plea that "Yat Rochathi Tat Graahyam--Yan Na Rochathi Tat Thyaajyam" is very "sweet' to hear.But not so sweet in practice.In one meeting of Union Health Ministry's Autonomous body H.Q.6 or 7 Tamilians attended.A number of them- were Modern Pathologists,Pharmacologists, educated in English medium--some in U.K.--the meeting started in English.One Heavy Weight Hindi Zealot insisted that the meeting should be conducted only in Hindi.When Tamils pleaded that they don't understnd Hindi,the Zealot argued that The legal position is "English "May" be used (may coinue) and Hindi "shall" be used.I could understand Hindi,because of my stay in Delhi for 20 years and "poor" Tamil colleagues were totally in dark as to what was happening in the mmeting.More often than NOT,there are more arrogant Zealots who can express very well in English,but insists on Hindi.Tamils have a "dis-advantage" to study 3 languages as all other Non-Hindi Citizens.

Mr.Katju, if someone needs to learn a language they will. But as a state, the TN government should only offer Tamil and English as the main languages in it's schools and not burden students with Hindi as the 3rd language. The day you actively canvass people in the Hindi belt to learn any South Indian (Dravidian) language, be it Tamil, Telugu, Kannadam or Malayalam will be the day we will consider that your intentions are honourable. Otherwise you come across as an evangelist for Hindi. In UP, your native state, you have canvassed for Urdu as the 3rd language instead of offering one of the South Indian languages. You sir are a missionary for Hindi and quiet rightly, the people of TN will reject your call.

Simple solution: Hindi and English are anyway unofficially, the link
languages for most of India. Let that continue. But add a third non-
Hindi related language in the North (in schools), and Hindi as the
third language in the South (it's there already in most of the South).
End of story. Learning an extra language in schools never hurt anyone.
If anything, it helps expand your perspective and your general
learning skills. Plus, this festering feeling of imposition will
disappear in places in the South, and there will be more plurality in
the North. Into this freedom of speech, let our country awake :)

Bang on target, Mr.Katju. You just step out of Tamilnadu, Hindi takes
over. The other South Indian states which opposed Hindi in the 60s have
learnt the language and are not regretting it. I found the language
useful even in Dubai. Tamilians should learn the language as a means of
convenience. Imposition in any form must definitely opposed.

respected sir, when you can pick up some local languages and
converse with it, its worth to mention people of other language to
pick up the local language to make them one among them. i dont know
why you specifically say about tamilians. as per your view, there
are many places for hindi to speak and maintain the language, let
this less populated small state be conserved for this local
language.

I am highly surprised to know that Justice Markandey Katju is unaware of
the fact that neither the Constitution of India nor Indian law specifies
a national language. I request Justice Katju and The Hindu to correct
the fact that Hindi is not officially the national language of India.

respected sir,
1. you want to make rest of India comfortable for hindi speaking
people by making others to learn hindi and want hindi people
prosperous by making them to learn english? what concept u have
added into your talk about improvement of local languages, when u
say u think all languages are equal.
2. when u compare hindi with tamil, you have forgotten or mindfully
neglected that tamil is widespread offically across the globe than
hindi. Dont just compare just with numbers. Though Russian speaking
people is less is number its offical language of UN.
3. you also mentioned hindi as the national language of India.
though u are a judge how come u can make a blunder. hope you know
the difference between the national and official languages.
4.you told more commoners know hindi than english. the fact is that
more commoners knows english too, but they are not practice to
speak. if literacy of india is 74%, then it means each literate is
atleast knows the basics of english.

Sure, we should learn Hindi but at the cost of Tamil? I am sorry (period).

Facts:

Tamil is also widely accepted around the globe. If you brag about pakistan, other countries speaking Hindi/Urdu, please remember Tamil is one of the official language(s) in Singapore and it is widely spoken in Malaysia.

Even though England is close to many other European countries (speaking other languages), it existed to date. Have you ever wondered why?

Suggestion:

So please stop initiating debate 'saying that please learn Hindi' rather try to make an effort to appreciate all other beautiful languages in India.

Thank you

I am a retired person and I was studying in ninth standard during 60's
when the first Hindi agitation was started in Tamilnadu. I was
learning Hindi very well but the fanatic politicians spoiled my chance
to learn. During 90's I got transferred from Chennai to Hubli,
Karnataka. My son studied in English medium with Tamil as second
language had to learn Kannada also in private convent schools, so I
admitted him in Kendriya Viyalaya at Hubli. It was difficult according
to him to learn Hindi. Within a year I was transferred back to Chennai
and my son shifted to a private convent school. His language skills
are wanting particularly in Tamil, our mother tongue. Northern states
could have adapted English as a national language and permitted link
language as Hindi. I suffered during my business travels in other
states due to display of all in local languages. I assure you it is
language fanaticism open and clear and the politicians are to be
blamed for this.

If you ask me, he makes complete sense. I am from Tamil Nadu and I
picked up Hindi from school and by watching Hindi movies. I did my
undergraduate in Nagpur and I spoke Hindi for the first time although
I had taken classes and knew Hindi before going there. I never really
cared about issues with ka and ki (gender) since I trusted the person
in front of me to understand what I am saying! That being said, I also
had friends who did not know Hindi and hence had a lot of trouble
connecting with the non-Tamil/English speaking community, which was a
majority. But, they did come around to learning Hindi and while
graduating, were able to talk to people from Bihar or UP or Punjab in
Hindi! It just makes sense to have a common language to strike
conversation with one another and Hindi, as it happens, seems to be
the most prevalent one. Let's be practical. Nobody is asking you to
stop talking Tamil; just also learn enough Hindi to manage.

Honourable Former Chief Justice should take a second look at his demand, by the usage of the word "should" in his suggestion. If it is rational to learn Hindi as a connection language, it is also rational for Hindi belt citizens to learn English as the connecting language instead of asking someone else to learn their language for comfort.

Let us be fair for all. If everyone in India learns to communicate in English, it is 100% fair and 100% rational. Mr. Katju should consider avoiding the term "superior" while comparing Hindi to any other language. Hindi is superior only in number. If he can quote Pakistanis as Hindi speakers I would include the minority in Vietnam and Cambodia and a good majority in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Mauritius, Sri Lanka where there are naative Thamil speakers and it is official language in 3 of the countries I have mentioned.

Add to that the Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Andaman & Nicobar Islands where people Tamil.

Thanks
Prakash

By not learning Hindi Tamil working class are loosing a lot as they are mostly confined to TN and making Chennai a hell on earth. Also under national reforms, retired civil servants and judges must not be reemployed at all by govt. in various positions as is the prevalent practice in populous India and youth must be fully encouraged. Elders should confine themselves to non-governmental work in national reconstruction.

Imposition can be subtle too, Judge. Exactly what you are trying to
do.

Even Tamil loosing round in Tamil Nadu! I am working in an Institute in T.N.
I my opinion all Indian language will win, if like in Europe Indians language would
have one single script. In Europe like in India, there are many languages but have
with few exceptions only latin script. It is much easier to learn another european
language because of the Latin script. Most of the Indian languages have not only
common words with Sanskrit. Therefore India could revitalize the great Indian
Languages if all Indian Languages would have one script.
Every child in India should learn min three languages. North Indianone south
Indian language and south Indian Hindi.
In Europe even small regional languages like Dutch, Schwedish etc. are not
endangered, because every one learn three to four languages.
Every country has mother language as learning medium up to University level. In
India even at ITI the learning Medium is English. These students do not understand
the subject they have learning

Hindi imperialism shows no signs of dying down. This is very detrimental to the integrity of our country. Katju should understand this.

Honourable Katju sir, In what thing you will not have a opinion ? It seems your knowledge is limited on Tamil language is limited. While i was able to score good marks in other subjects but I consistently failed in Hindi subject again and again so my father took me out of the CBSE school and sent me to the Govt higher secondary school. There was no Hindi there I was also able to score 94% in the public exams too. The reason was Hindi subject was pulling my marks down and affecting the overall performance. Whereas you might claim you have equal respect for all languages, please practice it then. Your article shows you know all things but the problem is you lack understanding.

If the Tamilians feel the need for learning Hindi, they will. Like the supreme court judge who settled in Delhi and the business man in Madurai. I do not see any need for other Tamilians who are born and live all their life to learn Hindi. It is important to learn the local language wherever you settle. As a Tamilian settled in Bangalore, I learned Kannada. I am glad to see that Justice Katju had picked up some Tamil when working in Tamil Nadu. Many countries have left their languages and culture die in the name of national integration. France and China come to my mind. India should not do that.

It is mere commonsense to learn Hindi, in India. When you cross the borders of Tamilnadu, Hindi is useful. Rejecting Hindi is just politics of Dravidian parties. They themselves will suffer in silence, in Delhi, especially inside Parliament. Tamilnadu politicians should leave the choice of Hindi, to the people.

Mr. Katju is wrong in calling Hindi as a National language. India neither has a national language nor a national religion. He has to correct himself. Also I think Mr.Katju is still living in 80's. He has to go out and observe what is happening outside. Hindi or for that matter any regional language is persist only in Government sector that too only in documents. Most of the dialogue happens only in English and millions of Indians has earned job in Private sector because of English. Spoken language can be learned in 60 days, so why to waste studying a language for 12 years as a subject. A friend of mine picked up professional German in 60 days and earned a highly paid Job in Germany which demonstrates as a student you can spend that extra hour for 12 years learning Math’s, science or music and not waste time in a language. Countries like Singapore encourage learning another language just for 2 years as part of academic unlike Indian educational system.

I think the author is very reasonable in beseeching the people of Tamilnadu. It is for the people to take it or reject. Necessity is the mother of invention. Only when one knows the need to learn a language other his/her mother tongue, does he realize his/her folly. Let us not behave like an adamant child. Political leaders may say so many things. But we are the people who face the reality. Let us not pick holes in the statement of the author, let us only see the reasons behind his telling.

Actually, there are nearly more than 1 billion people in the world who
speak english snd may be another 1 billion use it for communicating.
There is nealry 1.5 billion who speak manadarin. Practically almost
all the international agreements are made in english. So according to
the great man's argument India should abolish all the languages and
adopt english or mandarin and this will make us in line with the
world. What a crap argument? If the Indians want to live in France or
Germany they go there and learn the language and survive. If Tamilians
want to go to north and work, we learn it in 3 months. If that supreme
court judge can't learn hindi in 3 months or a year at the most,
perhaps he is not qualified to be a judge. In any event its not a
crime not to have learned a language. So whats the fuss? Tamilians
will learn hindi or any other language for that matter if they need.
We don't need somebody from the north to tell us how good their
language, which is borrowed from sanskrit

All Indians irrespective of their mother Tongue, they learn Tamil in Singapore as it is an official language.

Tamil is an ancient language than Hindi, a language of the native Indians and I personally will never learn Hindi due to the experience, politics and the mindset of the Hindi speaking Indians. Instead Tamils should learn English, Arabic, French and Spanish that will help in the long term.

I lived in TN during the anti Hindi agitation days right upto the 100 weeks celebrattion of the Hindi film " Aradhaana " at Little Anand. Aradhana released when the Hindi agitation was only a few yrs old. Long serpentine queues were there for advance booking for the Hindi film Aradhana. I am Maharashtarian, who worked in Chennai and later moved to Mumbai. I was surprised to see the crowd sing along with the song " Roop Tera Mastana" in their own Chennai brand Hindi " Roop Kera Maskana" when the song appeared on the screen. At that time Kamaraj was not for imposing Hindi , but after the Kamaraj plan , Bhaktavatsalam made the cardinal mistake of imposing Hindi with directives from centre. Kamaraj as the Congress president was powerless. If Hindi had not been imposed and left to the " Parkkalam " philososphy of Kamaraj ( did he foresee Cyberspace etc) Hindi would have been popular in TN. " Parkkalam signifies an evolutionary approach, whereas brute force is always reactionary.

I think that Markandey Katju, Chairman, Press Council of India makes a real sensible stament than anybody regarding learing of Hindi. I do accept now that Hindi should be India's national language with English as the link language. I thhink and propose that all Indian States and Union terrritories should adopt the 3 (three) language formula in schools i.e. First language English (as it is the worldwide Language of learning in science, technology and mathematics), second the local language and third the national language Hindi language.

Yes, your suggestion has been rejected. The Westerners have taken due
advantage over the Indians using their English and high sounding
phrases, the same should not happen with Hindi over non Hindi speakers
as well. Good that you are respecting Tamil, otherwise you will see
the country Partition again. I am from Kerala, and if you do sweet
propaganda for Hindi over Malayalam, Kerala should then become a
separate country. Kerala should have done that long time ago based on
its literacy. How dare you fill the parliament with illiterate goons!
If the parliament was full of literate Keralites, India would have
become literate and socially developed forty years ago. Finally, I
must tell you, and warn you, do no compare India with Germany, France,
instead compare India to the whole of Europe. India is a sub
continent, if you can't understand that, then please go back to your
village.

Mr katju, You are a very rational man, and personally I am a great
admirer of you. You speak frearlessly what you think resonate with
conscience and is logical. I always wanted to know what a judge would
be like and now when I hear and read you, I realise a person like you
would certainly do judgement without being "judgemental".

This is classic Katju,"When in the Supreme Court, I would sometimes speak a few
sentences in Tamil when a Tamilian lawyer appeared before me. I think I was the first
Judge in the history of the Supreme Court to speak in Tamil in court". He's clearly
displaying the pathetic "I'm superior, but I learnt the ways of the noble savage"
mentality here. Please don't pay him any heed.

I would rather spend energy in learning English. That can get you livelihood. Also, Mr.Katju
should realize it is an emotional issue for Tamilians. I would like state govt to spend more
energy, time and money on Improving spoken English among college students.

Mr.Katju, thanks for your advise.

According to his own reasoning, everyone should learn English too. Why stop with
North India and Pakistan? Everyone should learn English and then a/c to Katju, the
world will be "more sensible" because they can do business with each other. Mr.
Katju, we thrive not because of our similarities, but inspite of our differences and
therein lies the root of what our founders believed in - "Unity in Diversity". Have you
been to Karnataka ? They have a limping movie and literature scene there. Contrast
that with Tamilnadu. I personally think the Tamilian view that "Tamil and English
suffice" is greatly justified. They're not doing this because they hate Hindi. On the
contrary, they're doing this to withstand the onslaught of Hindi and the whole
package. It's a matter of cultural identity and it should be preserved at all costs.

Excellent points..I have learnt Hindi at the age of 42 more out of
necessity and since I knew Sanskrit it was not difficult...Since most
of us ,Tamilians have to be out of Tamilnadu, in Mumbai/Delhi or
elsewhere we must know Hindi as the standard of education and
understanding of English is very low now in India(including Tamilnadu)
as I see from the e mails in English sent to people in various
Bank/Government agencies.Let us give a serious consideration to what
the former Chief Justice of Madras High Court says

the advice of Mr. Katju, make sense, he is a gem of a person, although
you may differ from his opinion on one subject or the other. He is
real well wishers of Indians and simply wants India obtain progress through practical link language. No doubt English is a language, (but
for elite class only or aspirant for that) but the same English has
also been imposed upon us by colonial power. Politicians has some
different agenda always as Sh. Thakarey or Raj Thakarey in Bombay (no
no mumbai), what ever the name may be. So think rationally before
rejecting appeal or advice of someone.

It is not on how many people speak Hindi which should decide what languages one should learn.If numbers are the citeria then every one must learn Bengali, Mandrin. The learned judge should realise that Tamil is an international language. It is an official language in Singapore, Malaysia, SriLanka in addition to TamilNadu. Tamil wil work in Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra as well. Let the Northern Indians learn an additional language other than Hindi or Punjabi before exorting Tamilians to learn Hindi. As that did not happen and wont happen, better to use English as the link language. Please dont rake up issues which has lost its time.

Katju is absolutely correct. In fact the benefits of learning Hindi (as well as English) are so obvious that it is ridiculous to even contemplate a debate over the issue. Unfortunately language fanatics have influenced education in government schools to exclude Hindi in Tamil Nadu. Like English, those who wish to learn Hindi have been forced to turn to private schools. This is how Hindi and English have become languages of the privileged in this state. As always the poor suffer with little opportunity for upward mobility.

Very true. Tamilians should learn Hindi and Hindiwalas should also learn English as it is spoken by much more people.

The debate about learning Hindi or not is something primitive for people in Tamil
Nadu today. Hindi is widely spoken and learned in Tamil Nadu. Many Tamils hold
senior positions in Northern states in government / corporate entities, who could
have not reached such feats without learning Hindi. I believe that such debates
occur as a consequence of other untold reasons such as the below.

After working for many years in the north of India, what we observe is that there
exists a superiority complex (mostly unjustified in terms of capability) in most of
the Hindi speaking populous (especially places like Delhi). By virtue of being fair in
complexion or tall the average Hindi speaker thinks South Indians are inferior to
them (which most of the time is proved wrong). If this, if at all, changes, there may
not be such debates.

Being an Indian, the only statement which really puts me down is "Hindi is a national language". From where did you get this statement? I dont need to remind you that, it is our "official language". I am not against anyone learning Hindi. Personally I support it. In tamil we have a slogan, "Thirai kadal Odiyum Thiraviyam Thedu" (Go forth and venture across the oceans to find your fortunes). To succeed in life and to establish ourself outside our land, we need to know the best way to communicate with the rest of the world.

I live outside India. A colleague of mine from Hindi speaking background told me the other day "The one who doesnt know Hindi is not an Indian". This is absoultely unacceptable! Not only him, almost 90% of the Hindi speaking people(around me) have this attitude. If this is the case outside India, I can imagine the attitude of Hindi speaking peoiple in India. Now, I regeret for learning Hindi. Well, by the end of the day I dont like to suggest someone to learn Hindi

learning other language ,the horizon of knowledge exceeds local barrier and everyone benefits,politicians always create barrier but economic unite people,politics always divide ,,in india,hindi must be learn by everyone who want to go out side of tamil nadu,if some need more affection,integration and economics gain

Why do we need such articles in first place, if the author agrees that, people will learn the language, when its needed? A southie will learn Hindi, if he is doing business in North India or he is going to reside there. Do you want all the Southies to anticipate the need and learn? Can the author show the number of North Indians who has pro-actively learned other languages? You want to make the Northies life easy by suggesting that everyone Hindi. The author should not have used the word "should" in the statement "Tamil Nadu should learn Hindi". It is just imposing.

"Politicians say that we do not want Hindi, but we have to do business.
So I have learnt Hindi" - Exactly, I am not against Hindi, but what is
the need for that? I don't have any reason to learn Hindi. If there is
any business needs arises, then I would certainly learn Hindi or any
language for that matter. It is up to me to decide and don't want others
to suggest/dictate me.

We reject your proposal and suggestion with all the contempt it
deserves. Most of your arguments are wrong and do mot deserve to be
debated.

I am Hindi-speaking and am most perturbed when I see fellow Hindi-
speaking people not speaking local language in non-Hindi speaking
areas. They seem to entertain a dogma that they speak rashtra-bhasha
and hence need not learn the local language. I was young then and
didn't understand the importance.I received my lesson on importance of
language from Dr.D.K.Patwardhan, Dept of Silicate technology,
Institute of Technology, BHU who was a friend of my late father when I
paid him a visit after 2-year stay in Mumbai. "Have you learnt
Marathi?", he asked. I replied "There is no need. However, I have
learnt English conversation as it helps in my place of work".
He said "Listen, young man, if you go to some Office, the official is
not concerned and will not change its rules in whatever language you
speak. Similarly, a shop-keeper is interested in selling his stuff and
not the language you speak. But, if you speak to the man on the street
in his language, you win his heart". I learnt the lesson.

Respected Sir!
I personally think, Tamils are enough matured to choose their way of
communication. Tamils don't migrate much out for employment to other
Indian states, unlike people from Hindi speaking belt.

I regret to inform you imposition of any language to any one is not acceptable. I was jailed in
1962 for my objection and agitation against then home minister Gulsarilal Nanda to use
emergency to enforce Hindi to South Indians especially in Tamil Nadu in collaboration with
the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister. I am originally from Kerala and I participated with my Tamil
friends in the agitation for which I was jailed and the police barred me from Madras
(Chennai). I was unable to continue my education and the incidence forced me to go abroad
for education. Under no circumstances the language issue should be reopened and it will
endanger the youth from their professional carriers as the North Indians have the sole
advantage of their mother tongue.

Rationality is one thing and necessity another.
I am a south Indian,I know hindi and it has helped me while I was in Delhi. But I don't consider it as a unifying language.
1.Hindi speakers often have the feeling that India is synonymous with Hindi Belt. With their language being the "national" language, the rest automatically become "regional" and hence secondary. This cannot be tolerated. I have seen this happen first hand and hence the fact cannot be denied.
2. Though it may be easy for a polyglot to master multiple languages, there is an unnecessary burden put on non Hindi speaking Indians to learn Hindi as a third language. English is already present as a "global" link language. So there is no need to study Hindi. A more useful thing would be to educate the vast masses of the Hindi belt in English, which may help them in a lot many ways.
3.Best way is to learn all other regional languages(including hindi) on a need/interest basis and make global language- english compulsory.

Does India have a National language? Hindi is just the official language
of India (Article 343 in The Constitution Of India 1949).

That is a well reasoned argument.
I've lived in Chennai for 2 years and almost everyone I've met spoke
Hindi, especially those who had to interact with people a lot,
shopkeepers, auto-drivers (even though they pretend otherwise when it
comes to haggling for the price).
Learning Hindi will help those who want to do business in states where
Hindi is spoken. Similarly if someone wants to work or do business in
Tamil Nadu learning Tamil will only help them.
More importance should be given to making a better life for you and
your family. If learning a language, which is not your mother tongue
does help in that, then why not do it?!