Two major developments happened yesterday and most likely where one would have dominated your news feed, the other wouldn’t have caught your eye. In what appears to be a series of setbacks to BJP, it seems that Hemant Soren, a symbol of Jharkhand’s indigenous tribal culture will most likely become their Chief Minister. But our tribal brethren in far north-east don’t seem all that happy. Although nation-wide opposition to the CAA and NRC caught every eye in the past week, it still is no answer to Assam’s concern regarding the law. In what comes as a band-aid on its wounds, the State government of Assam announced that it will make Assamese the official language of Assam, apparently telling its people that they need not worry about dilution of their culture and heritage.
Though this in no way addresses the magnitude of their concerns, and even as an assurance, it is a tiny one, this is not where the story ends. The compulsion to study assamese in school and use it as the official language will not apply throughout Assam. A certain region of the ethno-linguistic Bodo group, BTAD (Bodoland Territorial Administrative Districts), Barak Valley and Hills districts of Assam have been excluded, to avoid angering the Bodo group and Bengali-speaking community in these areas. As per the 2011 Census, roughly 29% of the population of Assam is Bengali speaking, out of which, around 31% are Hindus who will most likely become Indian citizens post implementation of CAA. Juggling at its best? But, can the State Government deliver on its promise? Articles 345, 346 and 347 of the Constitution of India empower the state legislature to adopt one or more languages as its official language, which it can even use for communication with the Centre provided, the Centre authorizes the same. But here’s the catch: never before have we seen a language being declared as an official language only in some parts of a State. There’s nothing in the above-mentioned Articles authorizing such a law. So, for the Assam Government to deliver on its promise, the Parliament will have to amend one of Articles 345-347 and make way for the state governments to declare a language as an official language in chosen parts of the state and exclude the other areas of the State. Looking at the present scenario, there is hardly any doubt in my mind that the Parliament will give its nod to amend the Constitution on these lines. It is arguably a risky model which, if followed widely, will contribute to further inefficiency in administrative matters. Oh, how will a poor Bengali-speaking babu in Barak valley comprehend the communication sent from Dispur! But the bigger question for you is, will the assamese people take this bait?
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