The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu has expressed its opposition to the Union Governments decision to introduce bills to replace the existing British-era criminal laws with Hindi names in Parliament.DMK MP P Wilson accused the central government of attempting to enforce Hindi throughout India by introducing the bills in Hindi.“I request that the names of the three bills be changed to English. Mandatory Hindi should not be implemented, as it means imposing and is unconstitutional,” Wilson said.Speaking at Chennai airport after attending a parliamentary session in Delhi, the Rajya Sabha member highlighted the diversity of languages in India. “English is the common language, as India has many different languages. All three bills are in Hindi, so people dont understand which bill it is. Those names are hard to pronounce. This will lead to the forced introduction of Hindi throughout India,” he said.Shocked to see names of new IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act in Hindi. Maybe the Hon. Union Home Minister has not seen Article 348 of the Constitution of India Names of Bills & Acts must be in English.This is yet another form of Hindi imposition. South Indian lawyers are going to… pic.twitter.com/TuXAjqpcdL— P. Wilson (@PWilsonDMK) August 11, 2023Wilson further asserted that the use of Hindi titles for bills is unconstitutional as it is against the Indian Constitutions Article 348. Article 348 (b) stipulates that the authoritative texts of all bills or acts introduced in either House of Parliament, or passed by the Parliament, must be in English.“The titles of the three bills are in Hindi. Titles of Acts being in Hindi is against the Constitution Article. It has been said in the Constitution that whatever is filed, including the bill, must be in English,” Wilson said.BJPs move reeks of linguistic imperialism: Tamil Nadu CM MK StalinTamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin also criticised the central governments move, describing it as linguistic imperialism. He accused the Union Government of attempting to replace regional identities with Hindi and condemned the effort as an act of recolonisation in the name of decolonisation.#Recolonisation in the name of #Decolonisation!The audacious attempt by the Union BJP Government to tamper with the essence of Indias diversity through a sweeping overhaul – Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill – reeks of… https://t.co/UTSs9AtUGW— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) August 11, 2023Taking to X, Stalin wrote, “The audacious attempt by the Union BJP Government to tamper with the essence of Indias diversity through a sweeping overhaul – Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill – reeks of linguistic imperialism. This is an affront to the very foundation of #INDIAs unity. BJP and Prime Minister Modi have no moral right to even utter the word #Tamil hereafter.“In the crucible of history, Tamil Nadu and DMK have emerged as the vanguards against such oppressive overtones. From the Anti-hindi agitations to safeguarding our linguistic identity, we have withstood the storm of #HindiImposition before, and we shall do it again, with unyielding determination.”He further asserted that the BJPs attempt to impose Hindi will be met with strong opposition and urged to halt the imposition of Hindi.“The fire of resistance against #HindiColonialism is ablaze once more. The BJPs audacious bid to supplant our identity with Hindi will be opposed resolutely,” he wrote, tagging the post with the hashtag #StopHindiImposition.Union Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the three bills in the Lok Sabha on Friday to replace the erstwhile laws related to the Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Code for Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act.
