H D Kumaraswamy joins ranks against 'Hindi imposition' in government's three-language proposal in National Education Policy 2019 draft

Joining ranks with the recent protests over teaching Hindi in non-Hindi speaking states as proposed in the draft National Education Policy 2019, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy said that one language should not be imposed on other in name of three language formula. 

"I am aware of the draft education policy released by the HRD Ministry yesterday. One language should not be imposed on others for any reason in the name of three-language policy. State governments stand will be known to the Centre after gathering more information on this issue," he tweeted in Kannada.

ನಿನ್ನೆ @HRDMinistry ರವರು ಹೊರಡಿಸಿದ ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ ಕರಡು ಕಾರ್ಯನೀತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹಿಂದಿ ಹೇರಿಕೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ನನ್ನ ಗಮನಕ್ಕೆ ಬಂದಿದೆ.

3-ಭಾಷಾ ಸೂತ್ರದ ಹೆಸರಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು ಇತರರ ಮೇಲೆ ಯಾವ ಕಾರಣಕ್ಕೂ ಹೇರಬಾರದು.

ಇದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ಪಡೆದು ರಾಜ್ಯ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ನಿಲುವನ್ನು ಕೇಂದ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ತಿಳಿಸಲಾಗುವುದು.#HindiImposition

— H D Kumaraswamy (@hd_kumaraswamy)

Meanwhile, the newly elected South Bengaluru BJP MP Tejaswi Surya said that the facts of National Education Policy 2019 have been twisted. He added that current draft of the NEP merely says that the 3-language formula can be continued in schools. He added that the NEP doesn't impose, rather encourages, learning Hindi as a language in school. In a series of tweets about the NEP, he added:  "It's sad that a few people with vested interests have created a 'Hindi Imposition' sentiment despite these facts being in the public domain."

READ: 'Don't Enforce It And Incite Us': Raj Thackeray's MNS Against Enforcement Of Hindi Asserting 'it Is Not Their Mother Tongue'

As the controversy snowballed, the Centre dismissed apprehensions on the issue and said there was no move to impose any language on anyone.

"Only a report has been submitted on the new education policy. Government has not taken any decision on it. It has not even considered it and therefore the misunderstanding that the government has decided on the new education policy is not true," Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar told the media.

"After we will get the public feedback, then only it will come up before the government. More importantly, the Modi government has always promoted all Indian languages and therefore there is no case of or intention of imposing any language on anybody. We want to promote all Indian languages," he said.

The draft of New Education Policy prepared by the Kasturirangan Committee was released on Friday, which spoke of the continuation of three-language formula in the schools.

READ: 'No Intention Of Imposing Hindi': Government Clarifies On Three-language Proposal For Schools, Says It's 'only A Draft'