New Delhi: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed a bill under which Kashmiri, Dogri and Hindi, apart from the existing Urdu and English, will be the official languages in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The bill was passed by a voice vote.
Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy introduced the bill stating that it was a demand of the people of Jammu and Kashmir that the language they speak should be the official language.
The minister pointed out that 53.26 per cent of the population of Jammu and Kashmir speaks the Kashmiri language.
Reddy said, “26.64 per cent of the population of the UT speaks Dogri while Urdu, which is currently its official language, is spoken only by 0.16 per cent population there. Still, for the last 70 years, Urdu continues to be the official language of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said, adding that 2.36 per cent population in the UT speaks Hindi.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday took to Twitter and hailed the passage of the bill in the Lok Sabha.
“A momentous day for the people of J&K as Jammu Kashmir Official Languages (Amendment) Bill was passed in Lok Sabha. With this historic bill…Long-awaited dream of the people of J&K comes true! Kashmiri, Dogri, Urdu, Hindi and English will now be the official languages of J&K,” he tweeted.
A momentous day for the people of J&K as Jammu Kashmir Official Languages (Amendment) Bill was passed in Lok Sabha.
With this historic bill…Long-awaited dream of the people of J&K comes true!
Kashmiri, Dogri, Urdu, Hindi and English will now be the official languages of J&K.
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) September 22, 2020
“Under this bill, special efforts will be made towards the development of major regional languages like ‘Gojri’, ‘Pahari’ and ‘Punjabi’. Along with this, the bill will also strengthen the existing institutional structure for the promotion and development of regional languages,” he said.
Amit Shah thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his commitment towards restoring the culture of Jammu and Kashmir through this bill.
“I thank PM @narendramodi ji for his commitment towards restoring the culture of Jammu and Kashmir through this bill. I also want to assure our sisters and brothers of Jammu and Kashmir that the Modi govt will leave no stone unturned to bring back the glory of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
I thank PM @narendramodi ji for his commitment towards restoring the culture of Jammu and Kashmir through this bill.
I also want to assure our sisters and brothers of Jammu and Kashmir that the Modi govt will leave no stone unturned to bring back the glory of Jammu and Kashmir.
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) September 22, 2020
