New Delhi [India], September 14 (ANI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday urged people to learn as many languages as possible but stressed that they should not abandon their mother tongue, while highlighting the importance of language and culture on the occasion of Hindi Diwas. 

He said that the Constituent Assembly adopted Hindi as the official language of the Indian Union on September 14, 1949, and highlighted the importance of language in preserving culture and self-respect.

In a video, Shah said, 'The Constituent Assembly adopted Hindi as the official language of the Indian Union on September 14, 1949. However, a paradox emerged after independence: while political freedom was attained, issues concerning one's own language, culture, and self-respect were relegated to the margins. From the ramparts of the Red Fort, PM Modi had called for freedom from the colonial mindset, and language plays a central role in this liberation."

He said that decisions such as renaming Rajpath to Kartavya Path and replacing colonial-era laws with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam were steps towards restoring self-pride.

"The renaming of Rajpath to Kartavya Path was not merely a change of name; three citizen-centric laws-the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam-were enacted to replace the punitive laws established by the British. This was not just a change of words; it was a restoration of self-pride," he further said. 

He also urged parents across the country to communicate with their children in their mother tongue. 

'I want to tell the youth: learn as many languages of the world as you can, but do not abandon your own language. I also wish to address all parents across the country and tell them to make it a point to speak with their children in their mother tongue. There is no greater sin than the inferiority complex that suggests speaking one's own language makes one seem lesser. It is the language that connects us to our mother, our soil, our history, and our culture," the minister said.  

Hindi Diwas, celebrated annually on September 14, marks the adoption of Hindi as one of India's official languages. The day highlights the language's role in bridging diverse linguistic and cultural communities across India.

According to a press release, the Constituent Assembly on September 14, 1949, designated the Hindi language in the Devanagari script as the official language of the Union of India. (ANI)