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<h1 style="margin-top:18px;margin-bottom:0px">Supreme Court on Sanskrit-KVS controversy: Blunting the outrage factory</h1></div><div class=""><p class=""><a href="http://www.niticentral.com/tag/sanskrit" style="color:rgb(255,255,255)">#Sanskrit</a></p>
<p class=""><a href="http://www.niticentral.com/tag/sanskrit-controversy" style="color:rgb(255,255,255)">#Sanskrit controversy</a></p>
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<div id="attachment_292652" class=""><img class="" src="http://img.niticentral.com/2014/12/700x380xsupr.jpg.pagespeed.ic.P7c7FtFem6.jpg" alt="Supreme Court of India" height="380" width="700"><p class=""><em>Supreme Court of India</em></p></div>
<p>In the needless controversy and outrage that followed the decision by
Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) of which the Minister of HRD Smriti
Irani is the ex-officio chairperson to rectify a violation of the
Central government’s Three Language Formula in vogue since the 1960s,
the Supreme Court too got involved. And, as it turns out, SC has laid to
rest at least one issue that the ‘seculars’ latched on to in their
baseless cries of “saffronisation”.</p>
<p>Writing for <em>Niti Central</em>, this author has <a href="http://www.niticentral.com/2014/11/18/german-kendriya-vidyalayas-controversy-little-known-facts-245478.html" target="_blank">earlier explained at length</a>
what the entire matter was all about. The manner in which this decision
was misinterpreted and distorted by some sections betrayed a sense of
ignorance. The Three Language Formula that the Congress government
devised back in the 1960s did not contain the option of having a foreign
language.</p>
<p>Despite this, MoU was entered into between KVS and Goethe-Institute
Max Mueller Bhawan in 2011 in the presence of UPA’s MoS (HRD) which
sought to offer German as the third language in KVS schools. Note that
Congress-led UPA could have changed the three language policy itself and
then introduced German. It could have addressed the nation on the
importance of German for Indian school students and why the three
language formula needed change.</p>
<p>But it didn’t. Instead, without officially changing the policy, UPA took this step.</p>
<p>The term of the MoU being three years, it came up for renewal in end
of August this year. August is, indeed, bang in the middle of the
academic term. Ms. Irani, therefore, had to decide whether to continue
with this violation of the Union’s three language formula to avoid a
mid-term change, or to take a bold stand to end this infirmity.</p><div class="" style><div class=""> <div class=""><div class="" id="slider2" style>
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<p>She chose the latter and was roundly criticized for it. What was
bizarre was the fact that most of the criticism was based on a conjured
up charge against her of ‘saffronising’ education by replacing German – a
‘modern’ and ‘global’ language – with Sanskrit – an ‘ancient’ and
‘obsolete’ language. As this author <a href="http://www.niticentral.com/2014/11/22/german-vs-sanskrit-controversy-created-deliberately-246235.html" target="_blank">again explained</a>, Ms. Irani’s decision was to end the violation of government’s own policy.</p>
<p>It wasn’t a simple case of replacing Sanskrit with German as most
ignoramuses saw it as. German could not be the third language and was,
therefore, made as an optional language still available to students who
desired to learn it. What became the third language was Sanskrit or any
other modern Indian language – exactly as the three language formula
required.</p>
<p>And this, as we will see, was exactly how SC saw it too.</p>
<p>The real question – which eluded most critics obsessed with
saffronisaton – was how the mid-term change would affect students in
Classes 6, 7 and 8 who studied German since the MoU came into effect.
That’s what SC focused on solely – how to ensure that students are not
adversely affected.</p>
<p>It disposed of the petition challenging Ms. Irani’s decision with the following measures:</p>
<p>– In the current academic session (2014-2015), there
wouldn’t be any examination/assessment for Sanskrit language for
students in Classes 6, 7 and 8;</p>
<p>– Students who were already learning German language as the
third language would take the examination/assessment for current
academic session as an optional language;</p>
<p>– From the next academic session, students of Classes 6, 7
and 8 will take examination in Sanskrit or any other modern Indian
language as the third language;</p>
<p>– Those students who wanted to continue to learn German could be free to do so as an optional subject;</p>
<p>Here is the <a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/250658024/Supreme-Court-Judgment-Sanskrit-Issue" target="_blank">link to the judgment</a>.</p>
<p>The underlined portions clearly convey that the three-judge Bench of
the Supreme Court (Justice Anil Dave, Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice
Arun Mishra) reaffirmed Ms. Irani’s decision to ensure that the third
language is Sanskrit or other modern Indian language and German was
available an optional subject.</p>
<p>Indeed, while examination in Sanskrit or another modern Indian
language wouldn’t be taken in this academic year (given that students
would have little time to prepare), examination in German would mean
examination in the optional language. Even in taking measures to avoid
hardship to students, SC did not think it proper to reverse Ms. Irani’s
decision, thus confirming Ms. Irani’s decision to uphold the Union’s
three language policy.</p>
<p>With this decision, the apex court has quite clearly blunted the
outrage factory that loves to spread fear of a conjured up
‘saffronisation’.</p>
<a href="http://www.niticentral.com/2014/12/22/supreme-court-sanskrit-kvs-controversy-blunting-outrage-factory-292649.html">http://www.niticentral.com/2014/12/22/supreme-court-sanskrit-kvs-controversy-blunting-outrage-factory-292649.html</a><br></div><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
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