Ahmedabad: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday renewed his push for Hindi’s wider official use, urging that the language go beyond daily communication and administration to become the medium of science, technology, justice, and policing.

Speaking at the fifth Akhil Bharatiya Rajbhasha Sammelan in Gandhinagar on Hindi Divas, Shah stressed that Hindi should be seen as a “companion” to other Indian languages, not as their rival. His remarks come against the backdrop of protests in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra over the Centre’s three-language formula, which critics say is a backdoor attempt to impose Hindi.

“Hindi should not remain just a language of conversation and administration, but should also become the language of science, technology, justice, and policing,” Shah said.

 

The minister cited Gujarat’s example, arguing that although it is not a Hindi-speaking state, it has embraced Hindi without losing its cultural identity. This, he said, has enabled Gujaratis to easily do business and integrate socially across India. He invoked Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, and K.M. Munshi as leaders who promoted Hindi while rooted in Gujarat’s traditions.

Quoting Gandhi, Shah said: “Sanskrit gave us the river of knowledge, Hindi carried that knowledge into every home, and the mother tongues spread it to every individual.”

Shah also underscored India’s linguistic and cultural diversity, urging parents to pass on their mother tongues to children while supporting Hindi as a link language. He referenced cultural traditions from Assam’s Bihu to Bengal’s Baul hymns, saying Indian languages together keep the nation’s fabric “inclusive and vibrant.”

To back his ministry’s efforts, Shah highlighted the creation of the Bhartiya Bhasha Anubhag under the Department of Official Languages, meant to support Hindi while also promoting other Indian languages.

The Union minister had earlier stirred controversy in June by claiming that “those who speak English in this country would soon feel ashamed.” Although he did not name Hindi then, critics saw his remarks as an indirect push to elevate Hindi at the cost of English, which many consider India’s practical link language.