BJP MP Ravi Kishan has introduced a private bill to include Bhojpuri in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, so that it can get the status of an official language. Ravi Kishan himself has been a star of Bhojpuri cinema. Even before this, he has introduced a private bill with the aim of giving Bhojpuri the status of an official language.
In the budget session of Parliament, he once again introduced a private bill. While introducing the Constitution Amendment Bill 2024, he said that Bhojpuri is not just about vulgar songs, but it has a rich cultural history and literature, which needs to be promoted.
In this bill, he said, ‘So many people speak and understand this language. This is our mother tongue. I want to promote this language because the film industry is also running in this language and lakhs of jobs are also being created.’
Ravi Kishan said that people have to take this language seriously. This language is not just vulgar. This language is very rich and has its own literature.
Why is Bhojpuri given official language status?
It is said in this bill that Bhojpuri language originated in the plains of Ganga. It is a very old and rich language which originated from Sanskrit language.
It further states that Bhojpuri is the mother tongue of people living in Uttar Pradesh, Western Bihar, Jharkhand and parts of Madhya Pradesh as well as in many other countries. Mauritius also has a large population speaking Bhojpuri language. 14 crore people speak Bhojpuri all over the world.
The bill states that Bhojpuri films are popular in India and abroad and have a profound impact on the Hindi film industry. Bhojpuri language has a rich literature and cultural heritage. Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan has also done some of his work in Bhojpuri. There have been Bhojpuri writers like Viveki Rai and Bhikhari Thakur. Renowned Hindi writers like Bharatendu Harishchandra, Mahavir Prasad Dwivedi and Munshi Premchand were also influenced by Bhojpuri literature.
It is finally stated in this bill that many movements have taken place in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to give Bhojpuri language its rightful place, but it is unfortunate that it has not yet got a place in the Eighth Schedule.
There has been a demand for a long time
There has been a demand for a long time to include Bhojpuri in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. In 1971, CPI MP Bhogendra Jha introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha on this issue, which was rejected.
Sushil Modi, who was the Deputy CM of Bihar, had said in 2013 that if BJP comes to power at the Centre, Bhojpuri will be included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. Former Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had also said that he would work hard to give Bhojpuri its rightful place.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had raised this issue in the Lok Sabha in 2009 and 2016. At that time Yogi Adityanath was an MP from Gorakhpur. In April 2016, Yogi Adityanath raised this issue and said that Bhojpuri is the biggest dialect in the world, which is spoken not only in UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand, but also in 27 countries of the world.
Earlier in 2009, Yogi Adityanath had raised this issue in the Lok Sabha and demanded from the then UPA government to include Bhojpuri in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
What is the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution?
Indian languages are mentioned in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. 22 languages have been given place in it. Initially only 14 languages were included in it. Later, 8 more languages were added to it after three amendments.
When the Constitution was made, it had 14 languages – Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Punjabi, Kashmiri, Assamese and Sanskrit.
Later, Sindhi was added in 1967, Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali in 1992, and Maithili, Santhali, Bodo and Dongri in 2003.
Which language is included and how?
According to the Home Ministry, there is no set criteria for including a language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
However, earlier committees had set some criteria on the basis of which a language gets the status of an official language. For example, according to the census data of three decades, that language should be spoken by at least 5 lakh people. It is used as a second language in the surrounding areas. It should be spoken in a state before the partition and is still being used in some states after the partition.
Apart from this, if a language is being used as a medium in school education and there is evidence of its existence as a written language for 50 years, then it is included in the Eighth Schedule.
But what is the benefit of this?
If a language is included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, it becomes an official language. In such a situation, one can take the exam in this language in UPSC and other civil service exams.
In the states where this language is spoken or written, it becomes the language of government work. Apart from this, speeches can be given or questions and answers can be asked in this language in Lok Sabha or Vidhan Sabha.
So will Bhojpuri be included?
At present, its scope is negligible. That is because Ravi Kishan has introduced a private bill. A private bill is introduced by a member of Parliament who is not a minister. Any opposition leader can also bring a private bill.
A private bill is brought to draw the attention of the government to the issue. However, it is very difficult for a private bill to become a law. Since independence, only 14 private bills have become law.
Earlier in the year 2019, Ravi Kishan had also brought a private bill to include Bhojpuri in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.