New Delhi: Rejecting a petition challenging the use of Urdu on the nameboard of a municipal council in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court on Tuesday said that the prejudice against Urdu “stems from the misconception that Urdu is alien to India.”
Dismissing the petition, the bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K Vinod Chandran emphasised that Urdu, much like Marathi and Hindi, was an Indo-Aryan language born in India.
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Former Councillor Varshatai Sanjay Bagade challenged the use of Urdu on a signboard of the new building of the Patur Municipal Council in Maharashtra’s Akola district.
Earlier, Bagade had approached the Bombay High Court, which also ruled in 2021 that using Urdu was not prohibited under the Maharashtra Local Authorities Official Languages Act, 2022, or any other legal provision.
Following the High Court’s ruling, she approached the Supreme Court. The top court highlighted that “language belongs to a community, to a region, to people; and not to a religion. Language is culture.”
“When you learn a language, you don’t just learn to speak and write a new language. You also learn to be open-minded, liberal, tolerant, kind and considerate towards all mankind,” Justice Dhulia began her judgement, quoting Anglo-Algerian author Mouloud Benzadi.
The apex court, delving into the histories of Hindi and Urdu, explained how efforts to merge the two languages were hindered by purists on both sides – leading Hindi to become increasingly Sanskritised and Urdu to adopt a more Persianised form.
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“Hindi was now understood to be the language of Hindus and Urdu of the Muslims, which is such a pitiable digression from reality; from unity in diversity; and the concept of universal brotherhood, Hindi was now understood to be the language of Hindus and Urdu of the Muslims, which is such a pitiable digression from reality; from unity in diversity; and the concept of universal brotherhood,” highlighted the court.
The court added that the language used by the masses is replete with Urdu, even if one is not aware of it. “It would not be incorrect to say that one cannot have a day-to-day conversation in Hindi without using words of Urdu or words derived from Urdu. The word ‘Hindi’ itself comes from the Persian word ‘Hindavi’,” it said.
