RSS, BJP treating Kannada as second grade language: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi charged that RSS and BJP are treating Kannada as second grade language. They will have to face people's outcry one day.

He was addressing the gathering at an open meeting in Molakalmur town as part of Bharat Jodo Yatra on Thursday. He said nobody can prevent people from speaking their mother tongue in India. Kannada must get primary importance in Karnataka and the party would give preference to regional languages, he promised.

He said youths of the state are asking the Centre why they are not permitted to write competitive examinations in Kannada. They must be given an opportunity to write such examinations in Kannada in Karnataka, Tamil in Tamil Nadu, Malayalam in Kerala. There is linguistic liberty in India, he defended.