CPI(M): Modi Govt. giving precedence to Hindi over other national languages is an injustice

Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) leader Brinda Karat on Friday accused the Narendra Modi-led NDA Government of giving precedence to Hindi as the language of communication on social media over other national languages.

Karat described the move as an injustice and against the principles of linguistic equality.

"The policy of the Modi Government to communicate on social media only in Hindi is against the principles of linguistic equality and is an injustice to other national languages. So the CPI(M) has asked for a modification in this policy. We have asked that along with Hindi communication should be in other national languages and also in English," Karat said.

The Home Ministry had on last month ordered all bureaucrats to prioritise Hindi over English on official accounts on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

Modi's government has ordered its officials to use Hindi on social media accounts and in government letters. Modi spoke in Hindi and used interpreters in meetings with South Asian leaders last month, and addressed the Bhutanese parliament in Hindi during his first official overseas trip last week.

This move by the Modi government has already made the Tamil leaders like DMK chief Karunanidhi and Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa to express their displeasure and have staunchly opposed this move.

Hindi and English are India's two official languages for Union government business, although India's

constitution recognises a total of 22 languages.