Minister seeks action against officials for 'sidelining' Kannada at Metro launch

Kannada and Culture minister V Sunil Kumar has sought action against officials responsible for sidelining Kannada during the inauguration of the Metro line between Nayandanhalli and Kengeri.

In a notice issued to Anjum Parvez, Managing Director of Bengaluru Metro Railway Corporation Limited(BMRCL), Sunil said that not using Kannada in signboards and the main banner at the launch venue was a 'serious issue'. 

"Sidelining the state's official administrative language during an event at the state's capital is a serious mistake," he said. The minister directed the official to initiate disciplinary action against officials responsible for the lapse and submit an explanation about the incident.

"It is unfortunate that such dereliction of duty occurred despite the state government order on using Kannada as the administrative language," he said, adding that the MD and officials under him had the responsibility to implement the order. 

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"... neglecting (the language) cannot be tolerated. Language is an emotional issue. Moreover, neglecting the administrative language will send a wrong message to the people of the state. Such lapse on the part of government departments — who have to promote Kannada — will be considered as a serious case of dereliction of duty. Therefore, I request you to immediately initiate disciplinary action against officials responsible for the same and provide an explanation," he said in the letter. 

The fact that Kannada was not present in the main banner at the inaugural venue had riled Kannada language activists and opposition parties, who had targeted the BJP government over the issue. The inauguration of the extension of purple line on Sunday was attended by Union Minister for Housing and Urban Development Hardeep Singh Puri and Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai. 

It can be recalled that during an event of CRPF attended by Union Minister Amit Shah held in Shivamogga earlier this year, only Hindi and English were used, triggering a controversy. 

Subsequently, to an RTI query, the Ministry of Home Affairs said that only "bilingual policy is applicable in the office of the Central government" and since CRPF was under the Ministry of Home Affairs, "questions of applicability of three language policy does not arise".

BMRCL is a joint venture between the Centre and the state government.