News Analysis India

Tag: Amit Shah

  • Rajya Sabha adjourned for the day amid Opposition protests over suspension of MPs

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the day on Monday amid protests by Opposition parties over their demand to revoke the suspension of 12 members of the House.

    As soon the House reassembled at 4 pm following four adjournments of varying durations, Deputy Chairman Harivansh called Home Minister Amit Shah to give a statement on the Nagaland firing incident in which 14 civilians were killed.

    Even as the minister was making a statement, Opposition members kept raising slogans against the government.

    Shah had made the same statement earlier in the Lok Sabha.

    As soon as Shah finished his statement, the Deputy Chairman adjourned the House for the day as Opposition members refused to relent and continued their uproar over the suspension of 12 MPs.

    Earlier, Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 4 pm as the House was unable to function amid protests by opposition MPs who had trooped inside the well over the suspension issue.

    This was the fourth adjournment of the day.

    After the House assembled at 3 pm following the third adjournment, Sushmit Patra, who was in the Chair, called for a short-term discussion on the situation in the country due to inflation, including the rise in the prices of petroleum products.

    Patra called the Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge to speak on the matter.

    The septuagenarian leader, however, asked the chair to first revoke the suspension of the 12 MP and allow them to participate in the discussion.

    Kharge said, “In a democracy, it is a crime to run the House and start a discussion after suspending 12 members.”

    Patra said that the proposal for the short-term discussion was brought by them only and now they don’t want to discuss it.

    “This topic is decided by them. The opposition wanted to discuss this and the government has agreed for this discussion,” said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

    “They are talking about democracy and we have agreed for it. Is it not democracy and spirit of the house?” “We are not running away from debate. We want to debate and discuss price hikes but you are seeing this. This is the hypocrisy of the opposition,” Sitharaman said pointing towards the MPs who trooped in the well of the House with placards and were raising slogans.

    After this, Patra asked Congress leader Anand Sharma to speak on the inflation issue as Kharge was not speaking on it.

    However, there was no answer.

    “You had given a proposal for short-duration discussion,” Patra said.

    Patra also called NCP MP Fouzia Khan to participate in the debate, who too asked the Chair to first revoke the suspension of the opposition MPs.

    Patra again called for Kharge, who asked him to first bring the House in order, then only he would speak.

    “You first bring the House in order. I am ready to speak but you revoke the suspension,” the Leader of Opposition said.

    Patra requested the protesting MPs to return to their seats saying Kharge was ready to speak, The protest, however, continued.

    Amid the din, Leader of House Piyush Goyal said, “Now the leader of opposition claims that he is ready to speak and wants to start the discussion and asks you to bring the House in order. This is like playing a game. Their own members are here (in the Well)….The Congress members are in the House.”

    The Leader of the Opposition “on one hand claims to bring the House in order and on other hand encourages its own MPs to be in the well,” Goyal said while holding the opposition responsible for the price rise, particularly of petroleum.

    The Union government has not only reduced excise duty on petroleum products the BJP-ruled states have also reduced VAT on petrol and diesel, he said.

    ​ALSO READ | Nagaland firing incident case of mistaken identity, govt expresses regret: Amit Shah in Lok Sabha”They (non-NDA parties) are responsible for this situation, particularly on petroleum prices and to cover up they are in action,” Goyal said, adding the whole nation is watching.

    Following this, Patra adjourned the House session.

    Earlier in the day, following a round of adjournment, when the House gathered in the afternoon, Deputy Chairman Harivansh called for laying on the table the statement of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

    The deputy chairman then sought initiation of the short-duration discussion on the ‘situation arising out of price rise in the country including the rise in the prices of petroleum products’.

    Kharge stated that he was ready for the discussion but requested that the suspended MPs be first called in the House.

    “I request you to please call them inside (the House) for once,” he said, noting the 12 MPs have been out of the House for five days.

    To this, the Chair said the Leader of Opposition and Leader of the House should sit together to find a solution to this.

    Kharge said the suspended MPs also want to discuss the price rise issue.

    However, the deputy chairman called out his name to initiate the discussion.

    When Kharge continued with his plea to call the suspended MPs to the House, Harivansh called the name of Anand Sharma then Fauzia Khan and subsequently Manoj Jha to participate in the debate.

    However, no member spoke a word on the issue of price rise.

    Opposition members started shouting and many members trooped into the well following which the deputy chairman asked them to go back to their seats.

    As the protest continued, he adjourned the House for an hour till 3 PM.

    Twelve Opposition MPs were suspended from Rajya Sabha last Monday for the entire Winter Session of Parliament for their “unruly” conduct in the previous session in August.

  • Indian economy fastest in world to come out of COVID pandemic impact: Home Minister Amit Shah

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Indian economy is the fastest in the world to come out of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic because of policy decisions taken by the Modi government, Home Minister Amit Shah said on Saturday.

    Delivering the keynote address at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit here, Shah said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had envisioned that India would have great opportunities in the post-corona world.

    He visualised that economic slump would affect the globe but the policy decisions by the government ensured that the global economic slowdown did not touch the country, Shah said.

    “It is the result of policy decisions of the Modi government that the Indian economy is the fastest to come out of corona impact across the globe,” he said.

    On the new coronavirus variant Omicron, he said that the government is keeping a close watch on related developments.

    Shah said the fiscal deficit remained in discipline in spite of the fact that the government committed Rs 15 lakh crore to be invested in the next three years to improve health infrastructure, provided free ration to 80 crore people and free vaccination to 130 crore people.

    “I am sure that country will find its place in the global order and the dream of Prime Minister Modi to have a five trillion dollar economy will come true,” he said.

    The home minister said the country has seen governments of the Congress and the NDA at the Centre and in states and that of socialists and communists in states, now experts on the economy must give a comparison by data analysis as to which government performed better in ushering development.

    “I believe that it is the duty of economic pandits that they bring forth this comparison before people so that they can decide at the time of elections. The result may not be according to your beliefs but this much transparency should be there,” he said.

    After the BJP came into power in 2014, Shah said, 80 crore people were brought into mainstream by opening their bank accounts and providing other facilities.

    He said the Modi government has shown humane face of the GDP.

    Elaborating on the point, Shah asked economists wether the supply of drinking water and cooking gas to every household and building of 10 crore toilets in the country will increase the GDP or not.

    Such policies not only help in the growth of GDP but also solve the problems faced by the people, he said.

    Shah said with steps such as direct benefit transfer, poverty alleviation, rural electrification and other programmes, PM Modi ensured the participation of everyone in the country’s progress.

    He said when the coronavirus struck, the World was apprehensive how a large country like India with such diversity, poor health infrastructure will cope with it.

    “People who ridiculed lamp lighting, bell ringing, masks, are now silent because the corona war was fought by 130 crore people along with state and central governments unlike the rest of the world where only governments were tackling the pandemic.

    When history is written there will be no other leader in the world who managed to convince 130 crore people to remain indoors just by self-discipline,” he said.

    “After Lal Bahadur Shastri, I have not seen the country paying so much respect to the words of any leader as it did to Narendra Modi,” Shah said.

    In the second wave when the oxygen emergency came up there was chaos for six-seven days, but the prime minister successfully faced the challenge by patiently arranging all available resources from across the globe, optimal use of domestic resources and communicating with district levels, he said.

    “The production capacity of oxygen in the country was 1,500 MT per day but our requirement was 15,000 MT per day. Within 10 days production was increased to 10 times under Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said.

    In order to boost economic activities after the pandemic, Modi made policy reforms to improve manufacturing in the country, increase investment for factories, and to change the investment climate.

    He said reforms were brought in the mining sector to encourage private investments, difference between captive and non-captive mines was abolished, mineral index development was started, stamp duty for mining lease was rationalized and commercial production in coal sector was cleared.

    “This opened a lot of investment opportunities in the coal and mining sector. Investment is coming, production has increased. When the world was facing a coal shortage and people were writing that the country may plunge into darkness but nothing of that sort happened because we increased coal production in time,” he said.

    He highlighted the changes in policies to give boost to the civil aviation sector, setting up of project development cells in every ministry, dynamic ranking system to spur healthy competition among states to attract investments, the schemes which have brought in Rs 2.25 lakh crore investment in the country.

  • Kashmir witnessing peace, investment and tourists post 370 abrogation: Amit Shah

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said Kashmir was witnessing peace, good business investment and influx of tourists post the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.

    He also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi ensured an optimum utilisation of resources to successfully fight oxygen shortage during the second wave of coronavirus in the country.

    Delivering his keynote address during the HT Leadership Summit here, Shah said the country has given a strong reply to the cross-border terrorism perpetrated by Pakistan, “hitting it in its house” by way of surgical strikes conducted by defence forces.

    No one believed that Article 370 and 35A can be repealed but Prime Minister Narendra Modi did it in 2019, he said.

    “I can say that there is peace now in Kashmir, investment is coming and tourists are flocking.”

    “Kashmir slowly is getting back to normal to stand in unity with the country,” he said.

    He said the Modi government made it clear through its armed surgical strikes into Pakistan that breaching Indian borders was not that easy.

    This feat till now was only known to be done by Israel and the US but India too now is in that list.

    “We want peace with everyone. The security of our borders is our top priority and we have given a definite and loud message in this context.”

    “Due to this, India now has a different acceptance in the world,” he said.

    Talking about the recent challenges posed by the COVID-19, the home minister said PM Modi’s effective policies brought out the economy, hit by the pandemic, in quick time.

    “Indian economy is growing fastest in the world now,” Shah said.

    Lauding Modi’s leadership, Shah said it was the first time that India’s security policy “came out of the shadows” of its foreign policy.

    He said in last 10 years before Modi government came to power (2014), there was a “policy paralysis” in the country, the Prime Minister’s office was “compromised” and India’s respect in the world had come down.

    “We got political stability in 2014 as there was an era of coalition governments for long in the country,” the home minister.

  • Ahead of Parliament session, government calls all-party meet on Sunday; PM likely to attend

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Ahead of the winter session of Parliament, the government has called an all-party meeting on Sunday, which is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources said on Monday.

    The floor leaders of all the political parties from both houses of Parliament have been invited to the meeting, they added.

    Besides Modi, senior Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah, along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, will represent the government at the meeting.

    The winter session of Parliament assumes significance as the government will table a bill to repeal three contentious farm laws, which is expected to witness a heated debate in both houses.

    The bill is expected to be passed at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

    During the upcoming Parliament session, the Opposition is also likely to raise the issue of phone-tapping using the Pegasus spyware.

    On Sunday evening, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has called a meeting of the floor leaders of the Upper House of Parliament.

    Similarly, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is expected to call a meeting of the floor leaders of the Lower House on November 27.

  • Trinamool brings its fight against BJP to Delhi; party MPs meet Amit Shah

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI/AGARTALA: Days ahead of the Winter Session of Parliament, the TMC has brought to Delhi its fight against the BJP in Tripura, with its MPs meeting Home Minister Amit Shah after sitting on a dharna outside the Ministry of Home Affairs for hours.

    TMC legislators Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, Santanu Sen, Kalyan Banerjee, Derek O’Brien, Mala Roy and 11 other MPs were part of the delegation that met Shah.

    “We told him in detail how leaders were being arrested and MPs being beaten up. He told us that he had spoken to the Tripura CM on phone yesterday and assured us he would seek a report from the state,” TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said.

    The issue of violence against party leaders would be top priority for West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee who is scheduled to land in Delhi at 8 pm and is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    The four-hour-long protest in front of the MHA saw both TMC legislators, from both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, raising slogans against the home minister and the prime minister over their silence on the violence in the northeastern state.

    “We want the home minister to listen to us. Both Shah and Modi need to answer for the violence that is happening in Tripura,” TMC leader Sukhendu Sekhar Ray said.

    Another party MP Saugata Ray said the protests were also against the arrest of TMC youth leader Sayani Ghosh in Tripura.

    The Tripura Police on Sunday arrested actor-turned party leader Sayani Ghosh on charges of attempt to murder after she allegedly disrupted a meeting of Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb by shouting “Khela hobe” (we will play) on Saturday night.

    Ghosh was arrested after being called in for questioning in a police station in Agartala, a police official had said.

    TMC MP Dola Sen said the party had sought an appointment with the home minister 24 hours in advance and after sitting on a dharna for six hours they were invited to meet Shah.

    “We primarily had three things to tell him, that the Supreme Court’s order instructing the state government to allow all opposition parties to campaign in a peaceful and orderly manner hasn’t been given to us. Second, we requested him to look in the Sayani Ghosh case, and of course we raised the issue of brutality against party leaders,” she said.

    Sen said that Shah told them that he would try to look into it.

    “After 30 hours, this is progress,” she added.

    Banerjee said that she will raise issues concerning the enhancement of BSF jurisdiction as well as the “widespread violence” in Tripura with the PM during her visit to the national capital.

    Talking to reporters before leaving for Delhi, she wondered why the human rights commission was “not taking a note” of the ongoing use of brute force in the northeastern state.

    “The chief minister of Tripura (Biplab Deb) and his government are defying the SC’s directive. They have to reply to common people. I will appeal to the higher judiciary to act against his government as per law,” she said.

    Earlier, the Supreme Court had asked the Tripura government to ensure that no political party in the fray for the coming local body elections “is prevented from pursuing its electoral rights in accordance with law, and from campaigning in a peaceful and orderly manner”.

    On Monday, the apex court agreed to hear on November 23 the TMC’s plea seeking contempt action against the Tripura government and others for failing to curtail violent incidents against opposition parties in the run up to the local body polls.

    Meanwhile, amid his party MPs’ attack on the government in Delhi over the violence in Tripura, TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee arrived in the state to take part in a campaign for civic elections.

    Here too, he lashed out at the BJP government on the issue.

    “The way the BJP goons attacked our supporters and activists at a police station only proves that a jungle rule is prevailing in the state. The ruling BJP in Tripura is using its police for narrow political gains, but this will not last long. We will fight them. The government led by Biplab Deb will not be able to silence the TMC,” the party general secretary told reporters in Agartala.

  • Trinamool to reach Delhi on Sunday night to meet Shah on alleged police brutality in Tripura

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: A delegation of TMC MPs will reach Delhi on Sunday night to meet Home Minister Amit Shah on the issue of alleged police brutality in Tripura, party sources said.

    The party has sought an appointment with Shah and the party leaders are scheduled to sit on a dharna from Monday morning.

    “Gujarat model in Tripura. All India Trinamool Congress will never accept such fascist brutality. Trinamool MPs headed to Delhi. Now. Eyeball to eyeball,” tweeted party MP Derek O’ Brien.

    The sources said the party delegation comprised of more than 15 members.

    The development comes amid Tripura police on Sunday arresting Trinamool leader Sayani Ghosh, who allegedly threatened Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb during a meeting here on Saturday night, on the charge of attempting to murder, a police official said.

    Ghosh, the youth unit secretary of TMC West Bengal, was arrested after being called in for questioning in a police station in the state capital Agartala.

    The development took place a day before a planned visit by the TMC’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee to the North-eastern state.

    Sub-divisional Police Officer (Sadar) Ramesh Yadav said Ghosh was arrested under IPC Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 153A (promoting disharmony between two groups) for her comments against the chief minister.

    Yadav said some persons who were with her allegedly threw stones at a street corner meeting which was being addressed by the chief minister.

    A police official, who did not want to be named, said a BJP worker lodged a complaint alleging that Ghosh had reached the spot where the meeting was being held and shouted “Khela hobey” (game will happen) and claimed that there were not even 50 people in the gathering.

    “Khela hobey” is a slogan used by the TMC during the assembly election in West Bengal held in March-April this year.

    Ghosh was earlier detained for questioning in a police station and arrested later.

    TMC leaders alleged that their workers were also roughed up by BJP supporters outside the East Agartala Women’s police station, a charge denied by the saffron party.

    Abhishek Banerjee in a tweet accused the BJP government in the North-eastern state of disregarding Supreme Court orders on the rights of political parties to hold peaceful programmes.

    “@BjpBiplab has become so UNABASHEDLY BRAZEN that now even SUPREME COURT ORDERS DOESN’T SEEM TO BOTHER HIM.”

    “He has repeatedly sent goons to attack our supporters & our female candidates instead of ensuring their safety! DEMOCRACY BEING MOCKED under @BJP4Tripura,” Banerjee said in the Twitter post, attaching a video of the alleged attack of Sunday morning.

    The Supreme Court recently directed Tripura police to ensure that no political party is prevented from exercising their rights in accordance with the law for campaigning in a peaceful manner.

    Police said some unidentified miscreants attacked a group of people who gathered near the police station during the questioning of Ghosh, but no one was injured.

    The TMC is contesting the Tripura civic polls to be held on November 25.

    The ruling BJP has already won 112 out of 334 seats uncontested across 20 urban local bodies including Agartala Municipal Corporation.

    This will be the first civic election that the BJP will face after coming to power in 2018.

    The Mamata Banerjee-led party is trying to gain a foothold in the state ahead of the 2023 assembly elections.

    TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev claimed that BJP sheltered goons attacked the leaders and workers of the party on the premises of the police station after Ghosh reached there.

    “Our candidates were beaten up; their houses vandalized and though complaints were filed, no action was taken. Police here are acting in a one-sided manner,” she told reports.

    The TMC has repeatedly alleged that its candidates were being prevented from campaigning by the ruling BJP supporters there.

    TMC West Bengal secretary Kunal Ghosh said if this is what is democracy in Tripura, “we would recommend to our leaders to do the same thing (to the BJP) in West Bengal”.

    Tripura BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharya denied the allegation, saying the saffron party workers did not ever attack anyone of the TMC as the party does not consider it as a political opponent to reckon with.

    The alleged attack created ripples in West Bengal where the TMC and the BJP were engaged in a war of words.

    BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar claimed that the TMC is unable to even field candidates in seats for the local body elections in Tripura.

    “They (TMC) have to take busloads of people from West Bengal to secure attendance of 500 people in Abhishek Banerjee’s public meetings. There will be no impact of meetings by Abhishek Banerjee or Mamata Banerjee,” Majumdar said.

    He claimed that the only opponent of the BJP in Tripura can be the CPI(M) and not the TMC.

    TMC leader and senior minister Firhad Hakim claimed that that the BJP was indulging in violence in Tripura.

    “But we will follow the democratic path and win Tripura. Democracy does exist in BJP-ruled states,” he said.

  • Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu calls for reducing rural and urban India divide

    By Express News Service

    NELLORE: Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday participated in the 20th anniversary celebration of Swarna Bharat Trust, at Venkatachalam in Nellore district.  

    Speaking on the occasion, the V-P said ‘seva’ (service) is the real religion, and stressed the need for reducing the divide between rural and urban areas. “Agriculture is the basic culture of our country. We need to focus more on it. The future of the country is the youth and we need to nurture them. And empowerment of women is also vital,” he added.

    Referring to the Padma awards, the V-P said that a new tradition has been set in recognising the real talent and grass-root level people who impacted the society. He opined that parents must encourage their children to get involved in service activities as it will help in the development of the society. 

    Shah said the service activities taken up by the Trust, which was inspired by the lives of Mahatma Gandhi, Deendayal Upadhyaya and Nanaji Deskhmukh, are highly appreciable as they have given hope to many.  The Trust has been continuing its services without any financial support from the government, Shah noted and added it has inspired many citizens. 

    The Union Minister opined that the building of ‘nav Bharat’ (new India) will only speed up when one individual from every village involves in development activities. Shah observed that the V-P, who hails from rural India and has spent decades in public service, is well aware of the issues that rural population faces.

    He took note of the initiatives introduced by Venkaiah Naidu when the latter was the Union Minister for Rural Development. “His ideology reflects in the service activities taken up by the Trust,” he added and appealed to the trustees to continue their work to uplift the downtrodden. 

    Former Minister and Trust chairman Kamineni Srinivas and others attended the event. Earlier, Shah visited Soma Skill Development Centre at Akshara Vidyalaya, and paid floral tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

  • Jhoot, Ahankar and Mehengai: UP acronym politics gets a bitter JAM taste

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW:  In a strong retort to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s JAM jibe, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief and former UP chief minister Akhileskh Yadav on Sunday said BJP’s JAM stands for “Jhoot (lies), Ahankar (Ego) and Mehengai (Inflation).”

    The SP leader was speaking to media persons in Kushinagar during the third leg of his Vijay Rath Yatra which was kicked off on Saturday from CM Yogi Aditynath’s bastion Gorakhpur.

    On Saturday, Shah claimed in Azamgarh during a public rally that while PM Modi brought JAM, based on Jandhan accounts, Aadhaar and Mobile, to eradicate corruption from the system, there was also an SP’s JAM meaning Jinnah, Azam Khan and Mukhtar. 

    Akhilesh Yadav during the ‘Samajwadi Vijay Yatra’in Kushinagar on SundayReacting to this, Akhilesh said: “They gave a new acronym —  JAM. It does not work in diabetes. Samajwadi people have also defined JAM, the BJP’s JAM stands for Jhoot, Ahankar and Mehengai. Nobody lies more than the BJP. They have sent JAM, we will soon send butter for them.”

    Lending support to farmers, Akhilesh said: “The BJP has brought three oppressive farm laws owing to which many farmers have lost their lives and a protest has been going on for almost a year now, but the BJP doesn’t care.”

    Taking credit for the recently inaugurated Kushinagar airport, the SP chief said it was a brainchild of his government.

    “Someone may call us backward but we are forward with our thoughts. We think of development despite being backward and they (BJP) think backward despite being of upper caste,”  he said.

    “Today UP is at the forefront of custodial deaths. Thoko raj is going on. Sensitive policing is needed. If Baba Yogi (CM) doesn’t know how to operate a laptop, then how will he do smart policing?” he added.If the BJP gets one more chance, it will crush the Constitution, claimed the SP chief.

  • ‘Top priority’: Union minister Amit Shah asks states to arrest drug menace

    By PTI

    TIRUPATI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday asked the states to give top priority to address the menace of drugs and check their spread.

    “Chief Ministers should give priority to addressing the menace and spread of narcotics, as drug usage destroys the lives and potential of our youth,” shah said in his closing remarks at the 29th Southern Zonal Council meeting here on Sunday night.

    The Union Home Minister also wanted the states to have “zero tolerance” to child sexual abuse cases as crimes against children were ‘unacceptable.’

    ​ALSO READ | Savarkar worked to enrich Hindi: Amit Shah

    ‘Cases under the POCSO Act should be given top priority. There should be zero tolerance on such cases. The time frame of completing the investigation in 60 days should be strictly adhered to,” Shah said.

    He asked the states to create an independent institution of Director of Prosecutions to expedite prosecution (in criminal cases).

    He said the Centre has initiated measures for amending the Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Evidence Act.

    Shah invited the states to submit their inputs for the amendments.

    Noting that a National Forensic Science University and Rashtriya Raksha University have been established, the Home Minister wanted the states to set up at least one forensic science college with syllabus in local language to train manpower to meet the requirements of scientific investigation.

  • Savarkar worked to enrich Hindi: Amit Shah

    By PTI

    VARANASI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday stressed the need for making Hindi flexible for its wider acceptance and cited the work done by V D Savarkar for enriching the language.

    Addressing the All-India Rajbhasha conference here, Shah said a number of Hindi words may not have existed if Savarkar was not there and “we would have had to use the English words”.

    “Veer Savarkar worked for ‘swabhasha’ (indigenous language) and ‘rajbhasha’ (official language). He made the ‘shabdkosh’ (glossary) of Hindi,” he said.

    “There was no (Hindi) word for director, he coined the word ‘nirdeshak’. Similarly, he coined ‘kala nirdeshan’ for art direction. He worked to enrich Hindi,” Shah said.

    “We have to make Hindi flexible if we have to make it acceptable,” he said, adding there should be no hesitation if words from languages of different states are included in Hindi.

    “Once the medium of speaking, writing and thinking, becomes Hindi, then it will carve its own way. But, Hindi has to be made flexible,” Shah said.

    He said English was imposed upon Indians as it was a foreign language.

    “Hindi and indigenous languages have not to be imposed, but have to be made acceptable by our efforts,” he said.