Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has tried to allay fears in regards to alleged ‘imposition’ of Hindi language as a compulsory subject in schools of Northeast states by the centre.
“In Assam, the Assamese language will get the first priority. It is our mother tongue. There can be no compromise with Assamese language,” Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
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CM Himanta Biswa Sarma further slammed the opposition by several organisations and political parties in the Northeast, including Assam, against ‘imposition’ of Hindi as a compulsory subject in schools up to class 10 in the region by the central government.
He said: “What’s wrong in learning an additional language. Assamese is the mother tongue in Assam and also a medium of education in schools in the state. Nobody has ever said that Hindi will replace Assamese.”
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“There was a debate over learning of Arabic language in Assam Assembly. There were no hue and cry over that issue. So why now? What’s wrong in learning Hindi language?” the Assam chief minister further said.
The opposition parties in India have decried union home minister Amit Shah’s pitch for the Hindi language, calling it “imposition of Hindi imperialism”.
“When citizens of states who speak other languages communicate with each other, it should be in the language of India (Hindi),” Amit Shah was quoted by the ministry of home affairs as having said at the 37th meeting of the parliamentary official language committee last week.