<p>The Supreme Court has made the welcome assertion that Urdu is an Indian language, as much Indian as any other language like Marathi, Hindi or Sanskrit. It has constitutional status, historical importance and practical use as a language of everyday conversation in many parts of the country. It figures in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution with 21 other languages which are all part of the country’s linguistic heritage. It is spoken by millions of people in the North, North-West and other parts of the country, not just by Muslims with whom it is sought to be identified. In Karnataka, over 10% of the population speak Urdu. It has a great literary tradition and Urdu shayari is part of life and discourse in many regions. The Court also noted that it is one of the official languages across UP, AP, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Bihar, Bengal, Telangana and Delhi.</p>.<p>Though it is a language with such wide usage and credentials, Urdu has often been treated with prejudice in recent times. It has been identified as a language associated with Muslims and even dubbed ‘gaddar zabaan’. The treatment has arisen from a mindset that seeks to alienate everything linked with the minorities. As with all issues used to create a divide among people, this mindset comes from a place of ignorance and prejudice. Languages are deployed in identity politics because they also have strong emotional values. The origin of the case before the Court shows how deep the roots of prejudice have gone. It arose from a dispute over a bilingual municipal signboard in Maharashtra in which both Marathi and Urdu were used. A former councillor moved the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court against it and the top court has now made a welcome affirmation of the status of the language.</p>.'Hindi of Hindus; Urdu of the Muslims' a pitiable digression from reality: Supreme Court.<p>The Court sent out a clear message when it said – “Language is not religion... Language is culture... We must respect and rejoice in our diversity, including our many languages.” It described Urdu as the finest specimen of the ‘Ganga Jamuni tehzeeb’ and asserted that viewing it as a language of Muslims was a “pitiable digression” from reality as well as the idea of unity in diversity. Both Hindi and Urdu evolved from the same linguistic source, and Urdu has been spoken and written in the country for centuries. The rejection and vilification of the language is part of a larger scheme of exclusion that is sought to be practised in the country. The many languages of India, including Urdu, and its religions, races and other diversities, represent and contribute to its composite culture. The Supreme Court has underlined this again.</p><p><em>Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.</em></p>
<p>The Supreme Court has made the welcome assertion that Urdu is an Indian language, as much Indian as any other language like Marathi, Hindi or Sanskrit. It has constitutional status, historical importance and practical use as a language of everyday conversation in many parts of the country. It figures in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution with 21 other languages which are all part of the country’s linguistic heritage. It is spoken by millions of people in the North, North-West and other parts of the country, not just by Muslims with whom it is sought to be identified. In Karnataka, over 10% of the population speak Urdu. It has a great literary tradition and Urdu shayari is part of life and discourse in many regions. The Court also noted that it is one of the official languages across UP, AP, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Bihar, Bengal, Telangana and Delhi.</p>.<p>Though it is a language with such wide usage and credentials, Urdu has often been treated with prejudice in recent times. It has been identified as a language associated with Muslims and even dubbed ‘gaddar zabaan’. The treatment has arisen from a mindset that seeks to alienate everything linked with the minorities. As with all issues used to create a divide among people, this mindset comes from a place of ignorance and prejudice. Languages are deployed in identity politics because they also have strong emotional values. The origin of the case before the Court shows how deep the roots of prejudice have gone. It arose from a dispute over a bilingual municipal signboard in Maharashtra in which both Marathi and Urdu were used. A former councillor moved the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court against it and the top court has now made a welcome affirmation of the status of the language.</p>.'Hindi of Hindus; Urdu of the Muslims' a pitiable digression from reality: Supreme Court.<p>The Court sent out a clear message when it said – “Language is not religion... Language is culture... We must respect and rejoice in our diversity, including our many languages.” It described Urdu as the finest specimen of the ‘Ganga Jamuni tehzeeb’ and asserted that viewing it as a language of Muslims was a “pitiable digression” from reality as well as the idea of unity in diversity. Both Hindi and Urdu evolved from the same linguistic source, and Urdu has been spoken and written in the country for centuries. The rejection and vilification of the language is part of a larger scheme of exclusion that is sought to be practised in the country. The many languages of India, including Urdu, and its religions, races and other diversities, represent and contribute to its composite culture. The Supreme Court has underlined this again.</p><p><em>Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.</em></p>
