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'Malayalam is Indian too': Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor slam Delhi hospital's language policy

"This is unacceptable, crude, offensive," tweeted Tharoor, on 'no-Malayalam' policy

PTI02_23_2021_000206B Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses a public meeting in Thiruvananthapuram | PTI

Hitting out against a Delhi government hospital circular asking nurses to 'not speak in Malayalam' during work, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi stated that "Malayalam was as Indian as any other Indian language". "Stop language discrimination," he tweeted. 

A row had erupted over Delhi's G.B. Pant government hospital directing nursing staff, a large section of whom hail from Kerala, to refrain from speaking their native language of Malayalam at work. The circular stated that their colleagues and patients don't understand the language, and warned of stiff penalties if the rules were not obeyed.

The circular, in its full form: "A complaint has been received regarding Malayalam language being used for communication in working places in GIPMER. Whereas maximum patient and colleagues do not know this language and feel helpless causing a lot of inconvenience. So, it is directed to all nursing personnel to use only Hindi and English for communication. Otherwise serious action will be taken."

Other Congress leaders like Shashi Tharoor and Jairam Ramesh slammed the move.

"It boggles the mind that in democratic India a government institution can tell its nurses not to speak in their mother tongue to others who understand them. This is unacceptable, crude, offensive and a violation of the basic human rights of Indian citizens. A reprimand is overdue," tweeted MP Tharoor.

"Absolutely, totally bizarre! This is unconstitutional, really," tweeted Ramesh. 

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