The present Coalition Government is shamelessly harbouring bias towards Dogri language and hence towards Dogra culture as well. Language is the main vehicle of a culture and it is the treasure house of its civilizational fund. How come this Government and more particularly the BJP coalition partner is accepting bias against Dogri as its policy? What it intends to do and is giving practical shape to its intentions is that it is imposing Urdu on Dogri speaking students which is not only irrational but also against the broad linguistic policy that has been defined in the Indian Constitution. The State comprises three regions and it being a mosaic of languages, religions and cultures, no external cultural entity can be thrust upon any one of the regions.
Before we come to the crux of the matter, let it be known that though Urdu is declared as the State language yet it is not the mother tongue or spoken tongue of any one of the three regions of the State. How come J&K State made Urdu its official language when it is not the mother tongue of any one of the three regions? It is a borrowed language for the State and the State Government is imposing it on the students of Jammu region and forcing them to give up their mother tongue. Isn’t it treason against the State and the people of the State?
Now let us come to the brass-tacks. In April 2006, Commissioner/Secretary to Govt, Education Department issued an order — Government Order No. 222-Edu of 2006, dated 10-04-2006 — conveying that sanction was accorded to the introduction of six mother languages including Dogri, in the areas where such languages are spoken as mother tongue from Class 1st in all Government/Private recognized institutions of the State from the academic session 2006-07. This was quite rational and satisfied the needs of all concerned particularly taking note of the fact that our State is a multi-lingual State. This order was in place until a few days ago when a circular was issued by authorities directing all schools in one district to teach Urdu as a compulsory subject in Primary classes from this session. What is the rationale behind this sinister order, blatant attack on the very foundation of Dogra culture in the State? There appears a deep-seated conspiracy and if the Dogra cultural and linguistic organizations are angered on knowing of this anti-people act of the Government, they are justified. Dogri is recognized in the eighth schedule and it has produced rich and bountiful literature. It is the vehicle of Dogra culture and embodies the finest sentiments and expressions of Dogra land. What the Government is doing is playing with the sentiments of the people and yet the Government claims to be a coalition and adhering to democratic norms. The primary responsibility of opposing the Government for this shameless bias against Jammu region is of BJP Ministers and elected representatives. But knowing that this is a volatile issue, the people will not wait for the Ministers and Members of the legislature to make a move and set things right.
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