Pondy CM registers protest against Amit Shah's pitch for Hindi

Puducherry: Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy on Sunday registered strong protest against Union Minister Amit Shah's pitch for Hindi as common language and claimed it was a "clear exposure of the hidden agenda" of the Centre to impose the language on non-Hindi speaking states.

The Chief Minister's comments come a day after Shah batted for a common language for the country and said it is Hindi which was spoken the most and can unite the whole country.

Addressing reporters, Narayanasamy said, "India is a multi lingual, multi cultural and secular nation and any move to impose Hindi would only strike at the pluralistic features of the nation and its cultural identity."

Ever since the NDA government under Narendra Modi came to power at the Centre, attempts were made to introduce 'one nation, one language and one religion' concept as had been propounded by the RSS, he alleged.

He appealed to the Union Home Minister to withdraw his views aired through his twitter handle.

"The Centre is clearly inclined to impose Hindi on non Hindi speaking States which would not be brooked in the larger interest of national integrity," he added.

In a series of tweets in Hindi, Home Minister Shah had said, "India has many languages and every language has its importance. But it is absolutely necessary that the entire



country should have one language that becomes India's identity internationally".

On the display of hoardings and banners in the Union Territory, he said he had issued clear instructions to commissioners of municipalities and commune panchayats to remove all hoardings in the wake of an incident in Chennai, in which a woman techie was killed after a banner fell on her.

On the free rice scheme, Narayanasamy took strong exception to the sustained stand of the Lt Governor that only cash equivalent to the quantum of rice under the scheme would be paid to beneficiaries and said it was a "clear case of interference" in the functioning of the government.

He also said he was mulling legal action against Kiran Bedi for flouting the decision of his government and more specifically the resolution adopted by the Assembly unanimously to distribute riceto card holders instead of making cash payment.

The deadlock caused by the Lt Governor only gave rise to a question whether she could continue to be the incumbent of gubernatorial post, Narayanasamy said.

The matter was now under the consideration of the Centre and till a reply was received on the modality of operating the rice scheme the government would credit cash equivalent of the quantum of rice to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries, he added.