JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy urges Karnataka Government not to celebrate Hindi Diwas

JD(S) tweeted its opposition to the celebration, stating that imposition of Hindi is tantamount to encouraging and fostering regional imbalance

A file photo of students forming the words Hindi Hai Ham as part of Hindi Diwas celebrations. | Photo Credit: S. Rambabu

JD(S) leader and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has written to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai demanding that the government not celebrate Hindi Diwas (September 14) with the money of taxpayers in Karnataka.

In his letter written on September 12, he argued that imposing Hindi Diwas is ‘injustice’ to the people of Karnataka. “Celebrating the Union Government-sponsored Hindi Diwas programme on September 14 forcibly in Karnataka will amount to injustice to Kannadigas by the State Government. I urge the Karnataka Government not to celebrate Hindi Diwas by making use of the State’s taxpayers’ money,” Mr. Kumaraswamy wrote.

ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಪಕ್ಷಗಳು ಹಿಂದಿನಿಂದಲೂ ಹಿಂದಿ ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು ದೇಶದ ಹಿಂದಿಯೇತರ ರಾಜ್ಯಗಳ ಮೇಲೆ ಹೇರಿಕೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾ ಬಂದಿದೆ, ಈ ನಿಲುವನ್ನು ಪ್ರಾದೇಶಿಕ ಪಕ್ಷವಾದ ಜಾತ್ಯತೀತ ಜನತಾದಳ ಬಲವಾಗಿ ವಿರೋಧಿಸುತ್ತದೆ, ಬಲವಂತವಾಗಿ ಯಾವುದೇ ಒಂದು ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು ಹೇರಿಕೆ ಮಾಡುವುದು ಪ್ರಾದೇಶಿಕ ಅಸಮಾನತೆಯ ಸಂಕೇತ. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/X5g8MBkJXu

— Janata Dal Secular (@JanataDal_S) September 12, 2022

Describing India as a ‘great union of States’ with thousands of languages and dialects, over 560 princely States that joined the Union, and myriad social and cultural practices, he said, “In such a country, celebrating one particular language is injustice..”

JD(S) tweeted its opposition to the celebration, stating that imposition of Hindi is tantamount to encouraging and fostering regional imbalance. “Tax paid by Kannadigas should be used for the welfare of Kannadigas, and not to promote another language,” said the tweet.

There was outrage on social media and opposition to Hindi Diwas in 2021 by Kannada organisations who had observed the event as black day.