MP Tejasvi Surya speaks at National Seminar in city

Mysore/Mysuru: Strongly advocating nationalism, BJP Yuva Morcha National President and Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya said that he will not compromise when it comes to protection of regional languages. The essence of regionalism is its mother-tongue and it needs to be preserved and protected at any cost.

He was speaking at a National Seminar on ‘National Integration and Regional Freedom’ organised by Akhila Bharata Sharana Sahitya Parishat, Mysuru City Unit, as part of B.S. Siddalinga Shetty Endowment, Siddarammanni Siddalinga Shetty Endowment, Siddananjappa Endowment and Shanthadevi Siddananjappa Endowment, at JSS Women’s College in Saraswathipuram, this morning.

Tejasvi Surya said that several countries spoke of nationalism but India displayed it by distributing the much-needed COVID-19 vaccine among its neighbours including its arch rival. First and foremost, they need to understand the real meaning of nationalism before commenting or criticising anyone. Till the BJP-led NDA Government came to power in the Centre, all the previous Governments totally neglected North-Eastern States. They started witnessing development works only after Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister in 2014. The rich cultural heritage of India has held people together, he observed.

The young orator of BJP said that regional languages will get its due importance in the recently-announced National Education Policy (NEP) which will be implemented in a phased manner from next year. 

“India’s nationalism does not mean anti-internationalism as propagated by some leaders. If we were not believers in nationalism, then we would not have distributed vaccine to our neighbours,” MP Tejasvi Surya noted.

Minor Irrigation Minister J.C.Madhuswamy, who inaugurated the seminar, said that regionalism plays an important role in a country like India that has 28 States, 1,600 languages and 6,400 castes. But, one leader who was accepted in length and breadth of the country has been Mahatma Gandhi. The States have suffered when the Central Government behaved in a dictatorial manner. For this reason, former PM late Indira Gandhi had been criticised. Though small States were brought under the federal structure, still the feeling of regionalism has not gone away, he said adding that the old Mysuru Districts witnessed a lot of development in various fields due to visionary rulers like Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar and thousands of people have been benefited from this king’s progressive policies including him.

Ruing that development will not take place where peace was missing, he said India was surrounded by enemies on all sides. Once Sri Lanka was a part of India but became a separate country thereafter. But India’s stand on Sri Lankan Tamilians has affected friendship among two neighbours. People of Sikkim and Nagaland were never considered as the citizens of India till recently. But things were changing after Modi became the PM, he said.

N. Ravikumar, MLC, Thontadarya, former MLC, Dr. R. Balasubramaniam, Founder, Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement (SVYM) and M.G. Sadanandaiah, President, Akhila Bharata Sharana Sahitya Parishat, Mysuru City Unit, were present.