The former Additional Secretary to the Gujarat government, K C Vanzara has filed a petition in Supreme Court seeking to notify Sanskrit as the National Language of India.
The petition wants the Supreme Court to issue a directive to the Union Government to notify Sanskrit as India’s National language while keeping Hindi as its official language.
This can be done simply by an Act or an executive order, without disturbing the present Constitutional frame, said the petition. “Official Language cannot necessarily be equated with National Language. Both definitely can be separate,” Vanzara said.
“India should learn from Israel who in 1948, made Hebrew, considered to be a dead Language for the last 2000 years, along with English as the official/national Language of Israel,” the petition said.
The plea said Sanskrit has “the biological scientific phonetic structure of Sanskrit, which develops the brain, rhythmical pronouncing and memorising capacity in children”. Even former PM had said “the greatest treasure that India possesses is and what is her finest heritage, I would answer unhesitatingly that it is the Sanskrit Language literature and all that it contains,” the plea added.
It is important to recognise Sanskrit as India’s National Language when European nations are showing keenness to these ancient languages. In Germany, 14 institutes offer courses in Classical Sanskrit literature.