How much more people of other languages should sacrifice in India for not knowing Hindi, asks HD Kumaraswamy

JDS leader and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy on Sunday (August 23) slammed the Ayush Ministry Secretary for allegedly asking non-Hindi participants to leave a training programme if they do not understand the language properly.

Kumaraswamy asked whether the Secretary had done this with "shameless excitement" to impose Hindi. The former Karnataka CM also asked how much more people of other languages have to sacrifice in India for not knowing Hindi.

In a series of tweets in Kannada, Kumaraswamy asserted that the unity of the country is dependent on constitutional federalism and every Indian language is part of the federal structure.

"When such is the situation, isn't asking people to go out of the training programme for not knowing to speak in Hindi, a violation of the federal system? anti constitution?" he asked.

Kumaraswamy demanded immediate action against Ayush Ministry Secretary, who according to the JD(S) leader has "obsession for Hindi supremacy".

The controversy started few days ago after yoga and naturopathy practitioners and master trainers were allegedly asked to leave a Webinar organized by the Central govermnent’s Ayush Ministry by Secretary Rajesh Kotecha.

In a video that is not independently verified, Kotecha is seen speaking in a mix of Hindi and English language, “those who need English can leave. I dont speak English very well, I will speak in Hindi”. In all there were about 37 participants from Tamil Nadu (each representing a district), who were deputed by the state government.

The event was organized by the Morarji Desai Institute of Yoga, which falls under the Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India. Attendees from Tamil Nadu allege that the event was held in Hindi, right from the very start.