Terming it an injustice to non-Hindi-speaking states' candidates, Siddaramaiah said the "double-engine" government "failed" the aspirants.
In a series of tweets, Siddaramaiah stated that language does not reflect knowledge and it is just a medium of communication. (Twitter)
Joining the chorus of leaders from South Indian states, senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Monday, 10 April, opposed the decision of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) to conduct its recruitment examination only in Hindi and English, and not in Kannada.
Terming it an injustice to candidates from non-Hindi speaking states like Karnataka, the former chief minister said that the “double-engine” government of the BJP had “failed” the state’s aspirants.
“I urge Prime Minister @narendramodi to immediately allow the candidates to write CRPF recruitment exam in Kannada too. It is important to relax the rule of writing the exam only in English & Hindi to help candidates from non-hindi states [sic],” Siddaramaiah said in a series of tweets.
I urge Prime Minister @narendramodi to immediately allow the candidates to write CRPF recruitment exam in Kannada too.
It is important to relax the rule of writing the exam only in English & Hindi to help candidates from non-hindi states.#ಭಾಷಾತಾರತಮ್ಯ pic.twitter.com/0Y6E81Heou
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) April 10, 2023
Stating that languages did not reflect knowledge and were just a medium of communication, he said that though candidates who studied in Kannada-medium institutions were smart, they might be unable to clear the exams because of the language barrier.
“This is injustice towards our youth,” he tweeted.
“Our youth are being deprived of jobs due to 40% corruption of state @BJP4Karnataka government & language policy of Union @BJP4India government. This has increased unemployment rate & destroyed the future of our youth. Double engine govt has failed our candidates [sic],” he tweeted further.
Our youth are being deprived of jobs due to 40% corruption of state @BJP4Karnataka government & language policy of Union @BJP4India government.
This has increased unemployment rate & destroyed the future of our youth.
Double engine govt has failed our candidates.#ಭಾಷಾತಾರತಮ್ಯ
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) April 10, 2023
On Sunday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah opposing the non-inclusion of Tamil in the test for recruitment to the CRPF.
He called the notification mandating only the use of English and Hindi “discriminatory” and “unilateral”.
The notification by @crpfindia to conduct its CBT only in English & Hindi amounts to blatant discrimination & denies equality of opportunity to non-hindi speaking states.
I urge Hon @AmitShah to immediately revise the notification to include Tamil and other state languages. pic.twitter.com/wVxURL9emz
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) April 9, 2023
According to a state government release on Sunday, of the 9,212 vacancies in the CRPF, 579 had to be filled from Tamil Nadu, the exam for which is scheduled to be held in 12 centres.
The chief minister told Shah, in his letter, that the Centre’s notification that the exam could be written only in English and Hindi made the aspirants from Tamil Nadu unable to attempt the test in their mother tongue in their “native state”.
“To put it simply, this CRPF notification is against the interests of those applying from Tamil Nadu. This is not only unilateral but amounts to being discriminatory,” the release quoted the chief minister as telling Shah.
Telangana IT and Urban Affairs Minister KT Rama Rao on Friday wrote to Amit Shah asking him to include Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and other official languages in the CRPF recruitment notification so that youth studying in regional languages get equal opportunities without any discrimination.
Request HM @AmitShah Ji to revise the CRPF national recruitment notification to include Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam & other official languages
These competitive exams are being held only in English and Hindi, which is a serious disadvantage to students who did not study in… pic.twitter.com/RnmvJ87r0m
— KTR (@KTRBRS) April 7, 2023
As per the BRS leader, lakhs of government job aspirants who are not acquainted with Hindi or English will face the issue as the notification says that the Computer Based Test (CBT) will be conducted in English and Hindi only.
“Competitive exams are being held only in English and Hindi, which is a serious disadvantage to students who did not study in English medium or are not from Hindi-speaking States,” KTR pointed out.
The protests against the imposition of Hindi in non-Hindi-speaking states also surfaced in October last year when the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) issued its recruitment notification for the posts of constables in the paramilitary forces, with exams only in English and Hindi.
This hurts lakhs of aspirants whose first language is not Hindi and provides an undue advantage to those who are well-versed in that language.
Leaders from southern states — especially Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Telangana — as well as rights group in West Bengal, such as Bangla Pokkho, have been vehemently opposing any imposition of Hindi in banking, railway services, display boards, and government events, and have also criticised the absence of regional languages in common entrance exams for central services.
May 02, 2024
May 01, 2024
May 01, 2024
May 01, 2024
May 01, 2024
May 01, 2024
