New Delhi/Bengaluru/ T’puram 10 Jan

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that a clause of the Malayalam Language Bill 2025 safeguards the rights of linguistic minorities. The Karnataka government had taken offence to the Bill, saying that it would impose Malayalam on the Kannada-speaking minorities in the border areas of Kasargod.

The Bill proposes to make Malayalam the official language in Kerala, mandating its use across government departments, including education. Currently, both English and Malayalam are the official languages in Kerala.

However, Vijayan noted that it clearly contains a clear and unambiguous non-obstante clause (Clause 7) which explicitly safeguards the rights of linguistic minorities, particularly the Kannada and Tamil speaking communities. He emphasised that the government remains firmly committed to protecting linguistic diversity and ensuring that no language is imposed on any citizen.

“Key provisions ensure that no language is imposed and linguistic freedom is fully protected. In notified areas, Tamil and Kannada speakers may continue to use their mother tongues for official correspondence with the Secretariat, Heads of Departments, and local offices, with replies issued in the same languages,” Vijayan wrote on X. This comes after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wrote a letter to him terming the legislation as unconstitutional.

Addressing concerns related to education, Vijayan stated that students whose mother tongue is not Malayalam are free to choose languages offered in schools in line with the National Education Curriculum. “Students from other states or foreign countries are not compelled to appear for Malayalam examinations at the IX, X, or Higher Secondary levels,” he clarified.

Similarly, Kerala Law Minister P Rajeev said that Siddaramaiah’s stance on the Bill was “wrong”, noting that the previous versions of the Bill mandated Malayalam education, but the new Bill makes it optional for linguistic minorities.

“He has taken a wrong stand, probably on the instructions of the Congress leadership,” he added.