The national government has indicated that it has no intention of breaking the rule. (File)
Madurai:
The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Thursday instructed the central government to strictly follow the provisions of the Official Language Act 1963.
The Supreme Court said the Center must respond in the language in which the state government sends the request to the central government.
“Once a representation has been given in English, it is the duty of the Union government to provide the answer in English only,” the court said.
The directions of a divisional bench made up of Judges N Kirubakaran and M Duraiswamy came on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Madurai Lok Sabha MP S. Venkatesh.
“Tamil Nadu has not set up an exam center in Pondicherry for the written test to fill 780 vacancies in Group B and Group C. So, on October 9, I sent a letter to the Ministry of Home Affairs requesting at least one exam on center in these areas,” read Venkatesh’s petition.
“The Home Secretary had replied in a letter in Hindi on Nov. 9, so I couldn’t know what they said in it,” it says.
On hearing from the PIL, The Bench said: “Replying in Hindi is a violation of the law. The people of Tamil Nadu continue to respond in Hindi to letters sent to the central government asking them to address their grievances. This violates constitutional legal rights and the Official Languages Act of 1963.”
MPs from non-Hindi speaking states are violating rights. Therefore letters in Hindi should not be sent to the Government of Tamil Nadu, MPs of Tamil Nadu and the people of Tamil Nadu. The Central Government may only send letters in English. should also order action against officials who break the rule,” it said.
The order issued by the court composed of Judges N Kirubakaran and M. Duraiswamy said: “Mother tongue is very important. Primary education should be given in mother tongue. But at the moment the emphasis is on the English way of education. The English language is more important in economic terms.”
The Bench stated whatever the message was, the explanation is not complete until it is understood in the native language.
“The government should realize the importance of each language and take appropriate measures for their development,” said the Bench.
“The Indian Office Language Act also confirms this. However, in this case, the petitioner has received a reply in Hindi,” the court said.
The national government has indicated that it has no intention of breaking the rule.
