Bengaluru: Pro-Kannada organisations in Karnataka are reaching out to Tamil, Telegu and even Marathi language outfits in neighbouring states to resist the imposition of Hindi in the southern part of the country, T.A. Narayana Gowda, president of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) said on Monday.

The proposed movement comes in the backdrop of increasing arguments pressing the need for Hindi as the national language—implied in the context of ‘Matrubasha’ (mother tongue) —and development of the country associated with it.

“We will be calling local language organisations from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and even others like West Bengal for talks in Bengaluru next month. We don’t need Hindi," Gowda said on Monday.

Many Hindi signboards on the Bengaluru Metro rail services were covered up in various parts of the city-a move Gowda says was justified as it was a state government asset and did not require information in any other language other than Kannada and English.

The perceived imposition of Hindi does not augur well for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) —a party considered “North Indian" and “pro-Hindi" —and its plans to penetrate states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala where it has little or no presence at all.

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Union minister for urban development Venkaiah Naidu—a Telugu origin politician—has been one of those in favour of encouraging Hindi to counter the importance attached to English.

Local groups in Karnataka, have defaced billboards, stalled movie releases and opposed politicians and personalities who it considers anti-Kannada or anti-Karnataka in the past.

Interestingly, local language groups in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra, who have locked horns for decades over various language and state pride issues, will set aside their differences to put up a united front against Hindi.

The Karnataka unit of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has also extended its support for the cause—a rather uncommon bonhomie between the two groups considering their decades of animosity over the Cauvery river water dispute.

“In Karnataka, Kannada must be the first priority. Can they (Centre) impose Kannada in Delhi, will it be accepted," Ramaswamy questions. He suggested a two-pronged formula where it would be local language and English that will be accepted with no room for Hindi.

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KRV and DMK have both been part of larger confrontations over emotive issues like Cauvery water sharing which has led to several instances of violent clashes over decades. Likewise, pro-Kannada organisations have clashed with Marathi groups over the years on various issues including Belagavi (formerly known as Belgaum)—about 500 km from Bengaluru— as Maharashtra claims the region to be part of its state.

The Tamil Nadu unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has also proposed to loop in chief ministers of non-Hindi speaking states to stop the Centre’s imposition of Hindi, The Hindu reported on Monday.

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