The language issue

Today, September 14th, is celebrated every year as Hindi Diwas.

When I was a Judge of Allahabad High Court I would be invited by the High Court Bar Association on the occasion of Hindi Diwas which was celebrated every year in a function in the Bar Library. I would tell the office bearers of the Bar Association who came to invite me that I would not like to come to the function because what I would say would create a controversy. However, they would insist and plead that I come and speak.

At the function many speakers would say “Agrezi Hatao”, that is, abolish Hindi from our country. Some would disparagingly describe English as a ‘dasi’ (slave girl).

When my turn came to speak I told the audience that if their children did not learn English they would only be fit to drive bullock carts (Hal chalane layak rah jayenge). I said I, too, love Hindi which is my mother tongue but that does not mean I should behave like a fool. All knowledge in the world is in English. If one went to an Engineering college all the the books are in English, similarly all the books in a Medical College are in English. If one wanted to study history, economics, philosophy, science, literature etc the books are all in English. Even the law books are in English. How could one do without English? It is totally stupid to say “Agrezi Hatao”, and only enemies of their children talk like that. In fact we must spread English more in our country for the country’s progress. So, on the occasion of Hindi Diwas I made the same appeal.

However, the language of the common people is Hindustani or khariboli, not Hindi. Hindi is an artificially created language. For instance, in Hindustani we say ' udhar dekhiye ' ( look there ). In Hindi we say ' Udhar avlokan keejiye ' or ' ' Udhar drishtipaat keejiye ', which is not said by the common man.

When I was a Judge in Allahabad High Court, a lawyer who always argued in Hindi appeared before me with an application entitled ' Pratibhu avedan patra '. I asked him the meaning of the word ' pratibhu '. He said it meant a bail application. I told him he should have used the word ' zamanat ' or ' bail ' which everybody understands, and not ' pratibhu ' which nobody understands.

After 1947 Persian words which were in common use in Hindustani were sought to be hatefully and systematically removed by some bigots, and replaced by Sanskrit words. For instance, ' zila ' ( district ) ' was replaced by ' janapad '.

This policy of hatefully replacing Persian or Arabic words which were in common use by Sanskrit words which nobody understood did great damage to Hindi. It is often difficult to understand the language used in govt. notifications in U.P., as they are in artificially Sanskritized language.

In fact a language grows stronger, not weaker, by adopting foreign words. English became stronger by adopting many foreign words.

Once I travelled on a rickshaw, and offered to pay the rickshawman the fare which I thought was proper. He said ' wajib hai ' ( it is the proper fare ). Now here was an uneducated man using a pure Persian word which had come into common usage. So we should not have hatred of foreign words which have come into common usage.

In Tamil there are many words from Sanskrit which have come into common usage, e.g. ' aacharyam ' ( aashcharya ). For instance, the first verse of Tirukkural says :

" Agar mudal eduttalaam, aadi bhagwan mudattre ulagu "

Here,out of the 7 words 4 are from Sanskrit. 'Agar' is derived from the Sanskrit word ' akshar', ' aadi ' and 'bhagwan' are pure Sanskrit, .and 'ulagu' is derived from the Sanskrit ' Lokam '. So should Tirukkural be altered or banned in Tamilnadu just because it contains a large number of Sanskrit words ? That would be foolish.

However, at the same time I appeal to the people of the non speaking Hindi speaking states like Tamil Nadu to learn Hindi ( or rather Hindustani ), because it is the link language in our country. For instance, Tamilians face great difficulty when they come out of Tamil Nadu, because they do not know Hindi.

When I met the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu some time back I told her that Tamilians should learn Hindi as it is in their interest to do so. She told me that Tamilians were indeed learning Hindi upto the 1960s, and Hindi was spreading in Tamil Nadu by Hindi films and Hindi Prachar Sabhas. But then some North Indians decided to impose Hindi in the South, and this created a strong reaction, and Tamilians stopped learning Hindi. I told her that it was wrong on the part of some North Indian politicians to try to impose Hindi in the South. This is the age of democracy, and nothing should be imposed. However what has happened has happened, and now my appeal to the people of Tamil Nadu is that they should learn Hindi.

Some time back I spoke to students of Anna University in Chennai, and advised them to learn Hindi I have received several e-mails from some of the students, who have said that they have started learning Hindi. However, one elderly gentleman ( perhaps a Professor ) said that there was no need to learn Hindi as English was already the link language in India. I replied that he was mistaken. English is only known by the 5-10% elite, not the common man. For instance, if you wish to take a taxi or auto in Delhi you will have great difficulty as taxi and auto drivers usually do not know English, and speak only Hindi ( or rather Hindustani )

In my speech in Anna University I mentioned that when I was Chief Justice of Madras High Court I was invited to a function in Gulbarga, which is in North Karnataka. I flew from Chennai to Hyderabad where I caught a taxi to Gulbarga. The Prof. of Gulbarga University who came to receive me was a Kannada speaking gentleman while the taxi driver was Telugu speaking, but they spoke to each other in Hindi .I was surprised that two South Indians should speak to each other in Hindi. I asked the Prof. for the reason. He said it was because Hindi was their link language. He did not now Telugu, while the taxi driver did not know Kannada, but they both knew Hindi. This shows that Hindi is the link language in much of India. In fact most people even in the non Hindi belt like Punjab, Bengal, Kashmir, North East, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, etc can speak Hindi. Hindi is even spoken in Pakistan, where it is called Urdu. Thus, knowledge of Hindi makes it easy to communicate in much of the Indian sub continent.

I appeal to the people of India to learn Hindi ( Hindustani ) and English, but nothing should be imposed.

The Language Question

When I was Chief Justice of the Madras High Court I was invited to a function in Gulbarga. which is in northern Karnataka. I took a flight from Chennai to Hyderabad, and from there travelled to Gulbarga by taxi. A Professor of Gulbarga University had come to Hyderabad to accompany me to Gulbarga. The mother tongue of the Professor was Kannada, while the mother tongue of the taxi driver was Telugu, but they started talking to each other in Hindi. I was a bit surprised, and asked the Professor why he and the taxi driver were talking to each other in Hindi, when both were South Indians. He said that he did not understand Telugu, while the taxi driver did not know Kannada, but both knew Hindi. So the only way to communicate with each other was in Hindi.

I am relating this incident to say that in fact Hindi has become the link language of the whole of India. Even in the states where Hindi is not the mother tongue, it is known to people in these states, and that makes it easy to communicate. Thus, almost all Bengalis, Kashmiris, Punjabis, Gujratis, Oriyas, people of North Eastern and even most southern states can speak manageable Hindi.

The only problem is in Tamilnadu. There, too, Hindi was spreading due to Hindi films and the Hindi Prachar Sabhas, upto the 1960s when due to the anti-Hindi agitation Tamils stopped learning Hindi. There was a feeling among Tamils that Hindi was sought to be imposed on them, and this caused a reaction. 

However, that is past history. I have been telling Tamilians that what has happened in the past has happened, but now they should start learning Hindi as it was in their interest to do so. This was because Tamilians face a lot of difficulty in communicating when they come out of Tamilnadu.
When I was saying this some time back in Anna University in Chennai one elderly Tamil gentleman stood up and said that Tamils knew English, and this was enough to communicate, so why should Tamilians learn Hindi ? I replied that it is not true that everyone in India knew English. It was only the 5% upper class who could speak English. If a Tamilian came to Delhi and took a taxi or auto he would not be able to communicate with the driver since the driver knew only Hindi.

I said I was opposed to imposing Hindi on the Tamils or anyone else. This was the age of democracy, and nothing should be imposed. However I was appealing to Tamilians to voluntarily learn Hindi, as that was in their own interest, and in fact many Tamilians told me that they made a big mistake by stopping learning Hindi in the 1960s. I said that they should now start learning it, or at least tell their children to do so, and most agreed with me.

While advising all Indians to learn Hindi, however, I wish to add two points :
(1) The local language should be promoted. For instance, I see no reason why the local language cannot be used in the High Courts. I myself often spoke in Hindi when I was a Judge of Allahabad High Court, and I see no reason why Tamil should not be used by lawyers when arguing before the Madras High Court, or other local languages when arguing in High Courts in states where that language is spoken. Of course if a Judge from another state has come to that High Court ( and Chief Justices all come from outside under the government policy), then English should be used, otherwise the Judge will not understand the argument. Also, judgments should all be in English, since all law reports are in English, and this enables lawyers and Judges in other states to read that judgment.

(2) Everyone in India should learn English. This is because all scientific literature in India is in English, and knowledge of science is essential for the country's progress. If one goes to an engineering college or medical college he will find that all the text books are in English. If one goes to a lawyers office anywhere in India he will find that almost all the law books in his library are in English. Similarly, books on history, geography, zoology, botany etc are almost all in English. How can one do without English ?
In this connection I may mention that when I was a Judge in the Allahabad High Court, the office bearers of the High Court Bar Association would invite me to the Hindi Diwas function which is held every year. I would tell them that it is better that I do not attend the function as I would say things which some people may not like. However, they would insist that I attend, and I ultimately agreed. When I would come to the function I heard some lawyers saying 'Angrezi dasi hai' (English is a slave girl), or 'Angrezi hatao' ( abolish English). When my turn came to speak I said that my mother tongue,too, is Hindi, but that does not mean that I should behave like a fool. I asked the audience whether they would like their children to prosper ? If they did, they must make them learn English, because scientific knowledge, and even knowledge in other subjects, is almost entirely in English. I said that it was silly to say 'Angrezi hatao' or 'Angrezi dasi hai'.

I would also like to add that simple Hindi, which is also called Hindustani or khariboli should be used instead of 'klisht' (literary) Hindi. In this connection I may mention that when I was a Judge of the Allhabad High Court a lawyer who always argues in Hindi appeared before me with a petition entitled 'Pratibhu Avedan Patra'. I asked him what 'pratibhu' meant. He said it meant a bail application. I told him that he should have used the word bail or zamanat, which everybody understands, instead of the word 'pratibhu' which no one, not even Hindi speakers, understand. Similarly, one day when I was on a morning walk near a military establishment in Allahabad I saw a board on which it was written 'Pravaran Kendra'. I could not understand the meaning of these words. I looked below where it was written in English 'Selection Centre'. I thought they should have written 'bharti daftar' which everyone would understand instead of 'Pravaran Kendra' which no one would understand.

It seems that after Independence in 1947 some people decided to remove Persian words which had become of common usage in Hindi, and replace them with Sanskritized words which no one understood. Thus, the word 'zila' (district), which everyone understands, was sought to be replaced by the word 'janapad'.

In my opinion this was wrong. A language becomes stronger if it adopts words from a foreign language, and it is a misconception that it becomes weaker. Thus, English has become stronger by adopting words from French, German, Arabic, Persian, Hindustani,etc. Hence one should not be intolerant in such matters, particularly when the foreign word has passed into common usage.

Think rationally about learning Hindi and it will make sense

I have seen some of the criticism in The Hindu to my article “Required, two tongues” (Op-Ed, September 20, 2012). I am a totally democratic person, and do not mind criticism at all. However, I would like to give my response:

(1) I have said that I am totally opposed to the imposition of Hindi in Tamil Nadu, or anywhere else for that matter. In the function at Anna University in Chennai, where I spoke recently, I advised Tamilians to learn Hindi. After my speech an elderly gentleman got up and said that Tamilians should not be compelled to learn Hindi, and English was good enough to be the link language in India. I replied that I was totally against any compulsion. If my suggestion that Tamilians should learn Hindi made sense to Tamilians, they should accept it, but if it did not make sense to them, they should reject it. Where is the compulsion? It is not fair to distort what I said.

(2) Tamil cannot be compared to Hindi, not because Hindi is superior to Tamil (I hold all languages in equal respect) but because it is much more widespread. Tamil is only spoken in Tamil Nadu, which has a population of 72 million. But Hindi is spoken not only in the Hindi belt, but in most non-Hindi states as a second language. In the Hindi belt there are 200 million people in Uttar Pradesh, 82 million in Bihar, 75 million in Madhya Pradesh, 69 million in Rajasthan, 27 million in Jharkhand, 26 million in Chhattisgarh, 26 million in Haryana, and seven million in Himachal Pradesh. Taking into account Hindi speakers in the non-Hindi belt in India (Punjab, West Bengal, Kashmir, Orissa, Assam and other North Eastern States,Telangana, etc), the number of Hindi speakers would be about 15 times that of Tamil speakers. Apart from that, Pakistanis (who number about 200 million) also speak Hindi, though they call it Urdu. How then can Tamil be compared with Hindi? Tamil is only a regional language, while Hindi is a national language. This is not because Hindi is superior to Tamil, but due to certain historical and social reasons.

(3) English is the link language only for the elite in India, and not for the common man. Anyone coming from Tamil Nadu to other parts of India will realise this. Without knowing Hindi he will experience great difficulty (in fact one of the Tamilian judges in the Supreme Court told me very recently that he had made a great mistake in not learning Hindi since he was finding it difficult in Delhi, but now he has started learning Hindi ). Only about five per cent of Indians know English (though I myself have appealed to people to learn English, since much of the knowledge of the world is in English, and I have strongly criticised those who say “ Angrezi Hatao (abolish English”). In fact Hindi is already the link language for Indians, even for many South Indians, as I had explained in my article.

(4) When I was Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, I once went to a shop in Madurai. To my surprise I heard the Tamilian shopkeeper speaking to someone on the telephone in Hindi. Since I had picked up some Tamil I said to him, “ Romba nalla Hindi pesreenga. Eppadi ? (You are speaking such good Hindi. How is that?”) He replied, “ Arasiyalle Hindi vendaamnu solvaanga, aanaa engalikkubusiness pananum. Adnaal kathukitten . (Politicians say that we do not want Hindi, but we have to do business. So I have learnt Hindi”). I think this shopkeeper had more sense than those who oppose Hindi.

(5) I dislike both Hindi haters as well as those who wish to impose Hindi on Tamil Nadu and other States. The issue should be considered rationally, instead of emotionally. No one can dispute that Tamil is a great language, with great literary works like Tirukkural, Silapathiharam, Manimekhalai, Kambar Ramayanam , and in more recent times, the great poems of the nationalist poet Subramania Bharathi and many others. I fully support the demand that lawyers in the Madras High Court should be allowed to argue in Tamil (except before judges who have come on a transfer from other States), though judgments should be in English so that people from other States can read them. 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.

I would appeal to Tamilians to once again consider my suggestion that they should learn Hindi. If my suggestion does not make sense, please reject it.

Published in The Hindu on 28th September,2012