Kerala High Court stays order mandating Hindi as third language in Lakshadweep schools
New Delhi: The Kerala High Court has deferred the implementation of a government order that made Hindi mandatory as the third language in Lakshadweep schools. The decision came while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Ajas Akbar, president of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), Lakshadweep.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji observed that language carries deep cultural significance and any alteration in the curriculum could have serious consequences. The bench questioned whether the Lakshadweep administration had conducted any study on the necessity and impact of the language change, to which the administration’s counsel admitted no such study had been carried out.
The administration defended its move by citing the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the National Curriculum Framework for the Foundational Stage (2022), and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (2023). However, the court clarified that the NEP 2020 only stipulates that two of the three languages taught in schools should be native to India, without mandating Hindi specifically.
The court also pointed out that under the Kerala Education Rules, 1959 and the Kerala Curriculum Framework, Arabic remains a prescribed subject of study.
The PIL argued that the administration’s decision to remove Arabic/Mahal from the curriculum violated the constitutional rights of a minority community, particularly affecting students from Minicoy Island where Mahal is the native language.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
