Bengaluru, Sep 12: JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy has written a letter to Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday, urging his government not to celebrate 'Hindi Diwas' by utilising the taxpayers' money.
The former Chief Minister said that forcefully celebrating Hindi Diwas, which happens to be on September 14, would amount to "injustice" to the people of Karnataka.
"Celebrating the Union government-sponsored Hindi Diwas programme on September 14, forcefully in Karnataka, will be an injustice to Kannadigas by the State government. I urge that for no reason Karnataka government should celebrate Hindi Diwas by utilising the State's taxpayers' money," Kumaraswamy said in his letter.
Noting that thousands of languages and dialects, over 560 princely States, and diverse social and cultural practices make India a "great union", he said, "In such a land, celebrating one particular language is injustice..."
Earlier, Kumaraswamy had opposed the Hindi Diwas celebrations, stating that it holds no meaning for those whose mother tongue is not Hindi, and demanded it be scrapped.
There was a large-scale social media outrage, also protests by pro-Kannada organisations to Hindi Diwas last year, calling it "imposition of Hindi".
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Kottayam (Kerala), Jan 11: Kerala BJP leader P C George has been booked for allegedly making remarks that could incite religious hatred, police said on Saturday.
George was accused of hate speech against a minority community during a TV discussion held early this week, sources said.
The Erattupetta Police here registered a case against the senior leader on Friday based on a complaint filed by the Muslim Youth League Municipal Committee.
He was booked under various sections of the BNS, police said adding that further proceedings would be initiated soon.
"The case was registered after the statements of the complainants were recorded," a police officer said. Meanwhile, BJP strongly condemned the police case against George and alleged that it was a "political vendetta by the LDF government."
Senior BJP leader and the party's Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar accused the CPI(M)-led Left government of not saying a word against Hamas and admitting PDF followers into their fold.
Justifying George, Javadekar said he has already clarified that his intention was to express opposition to extremism and not to target any community.
"FIR against PC George is political vendetta by LDF government, which doesn't say a word against Hamas and admits PDF followers into their fold," he posted on his 'X' handle.
"UDF is also guilty of appeasing extremist politics. It never appreciated ban on PDF or condemned Hamas. PC George has already clarified that his intention was to express opposition to extremism & not to target any community. Kerala stands firmly against extremism," he added.
BJP state chief K Surendran also criticised the Pinarayi Vijayan government for registering the case against George and said the party would face the case legally and politically.
He also alleged that the government registered the case against the senior leader under the pressure of communal forces.
FIR against PC George is political vendetta by LDF government, which doesn’t say a word against Hamas and admits PDF followers into their fold.
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) January 11, 2025
UDF is also guilty of appeasement of extremist politics.
It never appreciated ban on PDF or condemned Hamas.
PC George has already…