International journal of scientific and research publications | 2019
Regime of Linguistic Conflict: Understanding the Assamese Language Movement and the Current Political Scenario in the State
Abstract
India is unique because of its diversity. The Indian census of 1961 recognized 1652 different languages in India including languages which are not native to this land. But recently the move made by the central government to impose Hindi all over the country is yet another attack on the Assamese community in particular and also on other linguistic groups in general. The Assamese Language Movement was started from the southern tip of Assam a little more than 50 years ago. The agitation started just after the Assam Official Language Bill was introduced on 3rd March 1960. There was a movement in support of the Bill in the Brahmaputra Valley on one side, whereas on the other side the hill districts and Bengali speaking districts witnessed a massive protest against the bill. Now the introduction of the Citizenship Amendment Bill is a déjà vu for the people residing in Assam because the Assamese and Bengali speaking communities are seen coming and protesting for and against the bill. So language is a terrain contestation between the two communities. Among the major issues that affected Assamese culture and ethnicity, the issue of language was the most prominent one. With the help of this article I would like to draw a connection between the Assamese Language Movement and the current political scenario of Assam.