Opposition to Hindi shows the inanity of Tamil politicians

The people of Tamil Nadu are suffering greatly from the denial of the three-language formula in schools. Strangely, even those who know a little Hindi pretend not to. They say so out of fear of politicians. It can be said in all fairness that Muslims do not hesitate to converse in Hindi in all parts of the state. Why Tamilians, who have a knack for learning many languages, are denied the chance to learn Hindi is beyond anyone’s imagination. What is most shocking is that people have not launched any agitation against the imbecility of those in power.

Because of the anti-Hindi attitude, opportunities for communication and mobility across India are reduced, limiting access to certain jobs that require Hindi. Many central government jobs, national companies, and customer-facing roles require Hindi proficiency. Without it, candidates from Tamil Nadu often face disadvantages compared to others, though those who are highly educated do overcome this difficulty by learning the language soon.

Travelling or working in North and Central India becomes harder without Hindi, as English is hardly spoken in smaller towns. Hindi dominates Indian cinema and TV. Thus, not knowing it often limits participation in mainstream cultural conversations.

The National Education Policy (NEP) promotes a three-language formula including Hindi. Tamil Nadu’s resistance sometimes creates tension with the Centre, potentially affecting funding and opportunities. In pan-Indian organisations, Hindi often becomes the informal medium of communication. Non-speakers may feel excluded. Currently, Tamil Nadu does not have any Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs). The main reason is the state government’s opposition, rooted in Tamil Nadu’s unique two-language policy and its resistance to the three-language formula promoted by the Centre. This has led to decades of refusal to allow JNVs, even though the central government funds them fully.

JNVs across India follow the three-language formula (regional language, Hindi, English). Tamil Nadu enforces a two-language policy (Tamil + English), rejecting compulsory Hindi, which is nothing but the height of foolishness. With the intervention of the Supreme Court, it is hoped that the issue will be resolved. The Supreme Court has directed Tamil Nadu to identify land in every district for establishing Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) and to hold consultations with the Union Government, rejecting the state’s objections that these schools conflict with its two-language policy. The Court emphasised that JNVs should not be turned into a language issue and highlighted their role in providing quality education to rural and underprivileged students. The obduracy of Tamil politicians in favouring English and opposing Hindi, that too, at the detriment of the people, is not understandable. In fact, people should stand up and fight against the irrational policies of Tamil political parties.  

 

The Impeachment Motion is an attempt to browbeat Justice GR Swaminathan

Opposition parties, which swear by the constitution, are brutally violating it. A judge, in fact, speaks through his/ her judgments. Once the judgment has been pronounced, he/ she becomes functus officio. And in the same vein, it must also be said that after the pronouncement of the judgment, it becomes public property, and it can be subjected to praise or criticism. A judgment can be right or wrong. If that is wrong, the same can be appealed, but no judgment can be extracted from the judge by unjustified pressure.

However, what the opposition parties and their leaders have done by giving notice of impeachment against Judge G.R. Swaminathan of the Madras High Court, with the signatures of 107 Members of Parliament, to the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, shows their colossal ignorance of the Constitutional provisions. The notice was handed over jointly with the INDIA bloc leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, marking a coordinated move by the opposition alliance. The development is related to an order that allowed a section of devotees of the Uchchipillaiyar Temple to light the traditional Karthigai Deepam, a stone lamp pillar located near a Dargah at Thirupparankundram in Madurai.

The MPs moved the notice under Article 217, read with Article 124 of the Constitution of India. Needless to say, Judges can only be impeached on two grounds: proved misbehaviour or incapacity. These are the constitutional standards applied to judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts in India.

Proven misbehaviour covers actions that violate judicial ethics, integrity, or dignity. Examples include corruption, abuse of judicial office, bias, or conduct unbecoming of a judge. Misbehaviour must be proved through an inquiry by a judicial committee before Parliament can act.

Incapacity refers to a judge’s inability to discharge duties due to physical or mental disability. Here, there is nothing which could be proved against Justice Swaminathan. Clearly, this impeachment motion is an attempt to browbeat a judge; therefore, it must be dismissed by the Speaker with the contempt it deserves.