There are many omissions in the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development Bill, 2022, tabled in the recently concluded legislature session and the Bill requires a comprehensive revision, said a panel of writers and experts at a seminar held at the Kannada Sahitya Parishat (KSP) on Wednesday.
There are lapses in issues such as the enforcement system and the system of penalty. Hence, it should be reconsidered, said the panellists. They demanded that the parishat’s suggestions and resolutions be given priority in the process of revision.
Mahesh Joshi, KSP president, contended that the present Bill does not represent all Kannadigas, since it does not include non-resident Kannadigas and those from border areas.
Veerabhadra Channamalla Swami of Nidumamidi Mutt said organisations representing Kannadigas were not in the enforcement committee. Presidents of central, district, and taluk units of the KSP should be included in the respective committees, he suggested.
Bhyrappa’s views
Writer S.L. Bhyrappa argued that the proposed law was going to be administered through officers and therefore cannot be effective. “The KSP, a representative organisation of Kannadigas with autonomy, is the better organisation to implement the law effectively,” he said.
The former Minister H.K. Patil said there should be a wide discussion on this Bill. Instead of framing the law in the last part of its term, any government should introduce the Bill in the initial years, he said.
Constitutional framework
J.C. Madhuswamy, Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs, justified the Bill and said a few changes had been made in the procedure to avoid legal complications. However, expert discussions and suggestions are welcome, he said. “The draft given by the Law Commission has been amended to conform to the constitutional framework. Giving executive power to private individuals is not allowed,” he said.
The former Advocate-General Ashok Haranahalli, chairman of the Kannada Development Authority T.S. Nagabharana, Kannada activist Sa.Ra. Govindu and others were present.
