The protesters alleged that the event was promoting the imposition of Hindi in all Central government offices in Karnataka under the guise of the Centre’s language policy.
Published Sep 26, 2025 | 6:46 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 26, 2025 | 6:46 PM
Over 40 activists from the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike have been booked at the High Grounds Police Station, produced before the 1st ACJM Court, and sent to judicial custody.
Synopsis: Over forty Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists were arrested in Bengaluru after disrupting a Parliamentary Committee on Official Language meeting, protesting what they described as an attempt to impose Hindi on the state.
Over 40 activists from the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) were arrested by Bengaluru City police after they interrupted a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Official Language at the Taj West End hotel, Race Course Road, on Thursday, 25 September.
The protesters alleged that the event was promoting the imposition of Hindi in all Central government offices in Karnataka under the guise of the Centre’s language policy.
The event, which had been ongoing since Tuesday, was scheduled to conclude on the day of the protests. According to police, at around 10.45 am, KRV activists stormed the venue, raised anti-Hindi slogans, tore down banners, and damaged furniture.
“The fearless smiles of Karave activists on their way to jail send a clear warning to Delhi’s Hindi fundamentalists: Kannadigas will be the force that defeats them,” KRV state organisation secretary Arun Javagal wrote in a post later on X.
Police quickly arrived, took the protesters into custody, and restored order so the meeting could conclude as planned.
“The session commenced at 9.30 am. Between approximately 10.45 am and 11 am, about 30 to 40 members of an organisation illegally entered the venue in protest against the meeting agenda, obstructed the work of government officials present, and created a disturbance,” the police said in a statement.
“This caused a temporary disruption to the meeting. The police immediately arrived at the scene, took the protestors into custody, and controlled the situation. Consequently, the meeting at the Taj West End Hotel faced a brief interruption but was completed as per the pre-scheduled programme owing to the timely intervention of the police.”
The arrested have been booked at the High Grounds Police Station, produced before the 1st ACJM Court, and sent to judicial custody.
47 leaders of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) have been sent to judicial custody for protesting against Hindi imposition. Kannadigas must unite and raise their voice against the Hindi fundamentalists from Delhi.
ಹಿಂದಿ ಹೇರಿಕೆ ವಿರುದ್ದ ಹೋರಾಟ ನಡೆಸಿದ ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ರಕ್ಷಣಾ ವೇದಿಕೆಯ 47… pic.twitter.com/QdmI8xbd6z
— ಅರುಣ್ ಜಾವಗಲ್ | Arun Javgal (@ajavgal) September 25, 2025
Arun Javagal alleged that the agenda behind the Committee on Official Language meeting was to discuss the imposition of Hindi and demanded amendments to sections 343 through 351 of the Constitution, ensuring equal status to all languages.
“This has been an on-going protest against Hindi imposition since 2005. Even after all this, Hindi imposition is taking place and the government is not taking any action,” he told South First.
“The trouble we caused is because they are coming here and imposing Hindi. There is opposition from all across the nation but they are trying their best to impose using police force or loopholes in the Constitution. When we say all Indians are equal, why not our language also?”
He demanded that the Official Language Committee be changed instead to the Indian Languages Committee.
The Official Language Committee (OLC) was first constituted in 1955 under Article 344 of the Indian Constitution to progressively move away from English in favour of Hindi.
The first OLC was chaired by B G Kher for over 15 years, including standardising Hindi terminology for administration, training officials, and using international numerals, while emphasising deference to the interests of non-Hindi speaking regions, industrial advancement, and cultural diversity.
Subsequent OLCs are formed every 10 years, with a Parliamentary Committee on Official Language (PCOL) reviewing progress.
However, the Official Languages Act, 1963, has effectively extended the use of English indefinitely alongside Hindi, meaning the original goal of replacing English has not been achieved. Furthermore, the Constitution recognises 22 scheduled languages under the Eighth Schedule, with no single “national language.”
In recent years, the Commission’s work has become increasingly controversial, given rising opposition in southern states against the use of Hindi in official capacities or public services.
Although the committee includes members from various linguistic backgrounds, Javagal argued, “The Government will have members who are appointed by them and hence they will sign whatever decisions are taken.”
He further alleged that state governments lack any real say in the process and that such committees conduct meetings in multiple states to review the usage of Hindi.
He pointed to the 2024-25 annual report of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as an example of the Official Language Committee quietly advancing the Hindi promotion agenda. The report emphasises Hindi promotion through awards and incentives:
“This year also, implementation of Official Language Hindi and all other related programmes in the Department of Space (DOS) continued with vigour… The officers/employees doing maximum work in Hindi during the Hindi month are awarded… officers/employees of DOS/ISRO HQ and its Centres/Units were awarded Cash Prizes and Certificates for doing routine work in Hindi.”
Javagal further questioned the logic of policy-making that excludes linguistic diversity: “During the British rule, English was the language. When we got Independence, we got the right to speak our independent languages. This is a democracy where all are involved. If you keep people away while formulating policies, then what is the use? Where will people participate?”
He stressed that if languages such as Kannada aren’t used in official capacity, they will end up at risk of declining usage.
“In today’s globalised world, the ability to get more people to use a certain language is simple through technology. But the Union government using these loopholes in the Constitution is trying to limit the use of non-Hindi languages,” Javagal alleged.
“For instance, if you go to a country like Finland, it has very clear rules mandating service in local languages, despite having just 50-60 lakh population. But in India, as a symptom of section 343 of the Constitution, if you go outside the country, people assume that Hindi is the default Indian language.”
He continued: “Kannada is much older than Hindi, but if you go to a neighbouring country like Indonesia where Tamilians and Kannadigas have been for at least 1,000 years, most today don’t even know there is a language called Kannada. What is the reason? Because our government is only stifling Kannada and other regional languages, while promoting Hindi.”
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
