jbp123/hello · Datasets at Hugging Face

instruction stringlengths 1 84	input stringlengths 1 85	output stringlengths 1 83
(i) Bhartiya Kisan Union (in the wheat belt of North India)	(ii) All India Kisan Sabha (the oldest and the largest agrarian	group)
(iii) Revolutionary Peasants Convention (organised by the CPM	in 1967 which gave birth to the Naxalbari Movement)	(iv) Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (Gujarat)
(v) R.V. Sangham (Tamil Nadu)	(vi) Shetkhari Sanghatana (Maharashtra)	(vii) Hind Kisan Panchayat (controlled by the Socialists)
(viii) All-India Kisan Sammelan	(ix) United Kisan Sabha (controlled by the CPM)	4. Professional Associations
These are associations that raise the concerns and demands of	doctors, lawyers, journalists and teachers. Despite various	restrictions, these associations pressurise the government by
various methods including agitations for the improvement of their	service conditions. They include:	(i) Indian Medical Association (IMA)
(ii) Bar Council of India (BCI)	(iii) Indian Federation of Working Journalists (IFWJ)	(iv) All India Federation of University and College Teachers
5. Student Organisations	Various unions have been formed to represent the student	community. However, these unions, like the trade unions, are also
affiliated to various political parties. These are:	(i) Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) (affiliated to BJP)	(ii) All India Students Federation (AISF) (affiliated to CPI)
(iii) National Students Union of India (NSUI) (affiliated to	Congress)	(iv) Student Federation of India (SFI) (affiliated to CPM)
6. Religious Organisations	The organisations based on religion have come to play an	important role in Indian politics. They represent the narrow
communal interest. They include:	(i) Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS)	(ii) Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)
(iii) Jamaat-e-Islami	(iv) Ittehad-ul-Mussalmeen	(v) Anglo-Indian Association
(vi) Associations of the Roman Catholics	(vii) All-India Conference of Indian Christians (viii) Parsi Central	Association
(ix) Shiromani Akali Dal	“The Shiromani Akali Dal should be regarded as more of a	religious pressure group rather than a political party in view of the
fact that it has been concerned more with the mission of saving	the sikh community from being absorbed into the ocean of hindu	society than with fighting for the cause of a sikh homeland”2 .
7. Caste Groups	Like religion, caste has been an important factor in Indian politics.	The competitive politics in many states of the Indian Union is in
fact the politics of caste rivalries: Brahmin versus Non-Brahmin in	Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, Rajput versus Jat in Rajasthan,	Kamma versus Reddy in Andhra, Ahir versus Jat in Haryana,
Rajput in Bihar, Nair versus Ezhava in Kerala and Lingayat versus	Okkaliga in Karnataka3. Some of the caste-based organisations	are:
(i) Nadar Caste Association in Tamil Nadu	(ii) Marwari Association	(iii) Harijan Sevak Sangh
(iv) Kshatriya Maha Sabha in Gujarat	(v) Vanniyakul Kshatriya Sangam	(vi) Kayastha Sabha
8. Tribal Organisations	The tribal organisations are active in MP, Chattisgarh, Bihar,	Jharkhand, West Bengal and the North Eastern States of Assam,
Manipur, Nagaland and so on. Their demands range from reforms	to that of secession from India and some of them are involved in	insurgency activities. The tribal organisations include:
(i) National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN)	(ii) Tribal National Volunteers (TNU) in Tripura	(iii) People’s Liberation Army in Manipur
(iv) All-India Jharkhand	(v) Tribal Sangh of Assam	(vi) United Mizo Federal Organisation
9. Linguistic Groups	Language has been so important factor in Indian politics that it	became the main basis for the reorganisation of states. The
language along with caste, religion and tribe have been	responsible for the emergence of political parties as well as	pressure groups. Some of the linguistic groups are:
(i) Tamil Sangh	(ii) Anjuman Tarraki-i-Urdu	(iii) Andhra Maha Sabha
(iv) Hindi Sahitya Sammelan	(v) Nagari Pracharani Sabha	(vi) Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha
In more recent times, the pressure groups are formed to pursue a	particular ideology, i.e., a cause, a principle or a programme.	These groups include:
(i) Environmental protection groups like Narmada Bachao	Andolan, and Chipko Movement	(ii) Democratic rights organisations
(iii) Civil liberties associations	(iv) Gandhi Peace Foundation	(v) Woman rights organisations
11. Anomic Groups	Almond and Powell observed: “By anomic pressure groups we	mean more or less a spontaneous breakthrough into the political
system from the society such as riots, demonstrations,	assassinations and the like. The Indian Government and	bureaucratic elite, overwhelmed by the problem of economic
development and scarcity of resources available to them,	inevitably acquires a technocratic and anti-political frame of mind,	particularistic demands of whatever kinds are denied legitimacy.
As a consequence interest groups are alienated from the political	system”4. Some of the anomic pressure groups are:	(i) All-India Sikh Student’s Federation.
(ii) Nava Nirman Samithi of Gujarat.	(iii) Naxalite Groups.	(iv) Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).
(v) All Assam Student’s Union.	(vi) United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).	(vii) Dal Khalsa.
NOTES AND REFERENCES	1. G.A. Almond and G.B. Coleman (eds), The Politics of	the Developing Areas, Princeton, (1970), P. 185.
2. J.C. Johari: Indian Government and Politics, Vishal,	Thirteenth Edition, P. 591.	3. Paul Kolenda: Caste in India since Independence (in
Sission, P. 110).	4. G.A. Almond and G.B. Powell: Comparative Politics,	1972, P. 75–76.
78 National Integration	I	ndia is a land of widespread diversities in terms of religion,
language, caste, tribe, race, region and so on. Hence, the	achievement of national integration becomes very essential for	the all-around development and prosperity of the country.
MEANING OF NATIONAL INTEGRATION	Definitions and statements on national integration:	“National integration implies avoidance of divisive movements
that would balkanise the nation and presence of attitudes	throughout the society that give preference to national and public	interest as distinct from parochial interests”1 Myron Weiner.
“National integration is a socio-psychological and educational	process through which a feeling of unity, solidarity and cohesion	develops in the hearts of the people and a sense of common
citizenship or feeling of loyalty to the nation is fostered among	them”2 HA Gani.	“National integration is not a house which could be built by
mortar and bricks. It is not an industrial plan too which could be	discussed and implemented by experts. Integration, on the	contrary, is a thought which must go into the heads of the people.
It is the consciousness which must awaken the people at large”	Dr. S. Radhakrishna.	“National integrations means, and ought to mean, cohesion not
fusion, unity but not uniformity, reconciliation but not merger,	agglomeration but not assimilation of the discrete segments of the	people constituting a political community or state”3 Rasheeduddin
Khan.	To sum-up, the concept of national integration involves political,	economic, social, cultural and psychological dimensions and the
OBSTACLES TO NATIONAL INTEGRATION	Among the major obstacles to national integration include:	1. Regionalism
Regionalism refers to sub-nationalism and sub-territorial loyalty. It	implies the love for a particular region or state in preference to the	country as a whole. There is also subregionalism, that is, love for
a particular region in preference to the state of which the region	forms a part.	Regionalism is “a subsidiary process of political integration in
India. It is a manifestation of those residual elements which do not	find expression in the national polity and national culture, and	being excluded from the centrality of the new polity, express
themselves in political discontent and political exclusionism”4 .	Regionalism is a country-wide phenomenon which manifests	itself in the following six forms:
(i) Demand of the people of certain states for secession from the	Indian Union (like Khalistan, Dravid Nad, Mizos, Nagas and	so on).
(ii) Demand of the people of certain areas for separate statehood	(like Telengana, Bodoland, Uttarkhand, Vidharbha,	Gorkhaland and so on).
(iii) Demand of people of certain Union Territories for full-fledged	statehood (like Manipur, Tripura, Puducherry, Delhi, Goa,	Daman and Diu and so on).
(iv) Inter-state boundary disputes (like Chandigarh and Belgaum)	and riverwater disputes (like Cauvery, Krishna, Ravi-Beas and	so on).
(v) Formation of organisations with regional motives which	advocates a militant approach in pursuing its policies and	goals (like Shiv Sena, Tamil Sena, Hindi Sena, Sardar Sena,
Lachit Sena and so on).	(vi) ‘Sons of the soil theory’ which advocates preference to local	people in government jobs, private jobs, permits and so on.
Their slogan will be Assam for Assamese, Maharashtra for	Maharashtrians and so on.	2. Communalism
Communalism means love for one’s religious community in	preference to the nation and a tendency to promote the communal	interest at the cost of the interest of other religious communities. It
has its roots in the British rule where the 1909, 1919 and 1935	Acts had introduced communal representation for the Muslims,	Sikhs and others.
The communalism got accentuated with the politicisation of	religion. Its various manifestations are:	(i) Formation of political parties based on religion (like Akali Dal,
Muslim League, Ram Rajya Parishad, Hindu Mahasabha,	Shiv Sena and so on).	(ii) Emergence of pressure groups (nonpolitical entities) based
on religion (like RSS, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Jamaat-e-	Islami, Anglo-Indian Christians Association and so on).	(iii) Communal riots (between Hindus and Muslims, Hindus and
Sikhs, Hindus and Christians and so on–Benaras, Lucknow,	Mathura, Hyderabad, Allahabad, Aligarh, Amritsar,	Moradabad and some other places are affected by communal
violence).	(iv) Dispute over religious structures like temples, mosques and	others (The dispute over Ram Janma Bhoomi in Ayodhya
where the kar sevaks had demolished a disputed structure on	December 6, 1992).	The reasons for the persistence of com-munalism include
religious orthodoxy of muslims, role of Pakistan, hindu	chauvinism, government’s inertia, role of political parties and other	groups, electoral compulsions, communal media, socio-economic
factors and so on.	3. Casteism	Casteism implies love for one’s own caste-group in preference to
(i) Formation of political parties on the basis of caste (like	Justice Party in Madras, DMK, Kerala Congress, Republican	Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and so on).
(ii) Emergence of pressure groups (nonpolitical entities) based	on caste (like Nadar Association, Harijan Sevak Sangh,	Kshatriya Mahasabha and so on).
(iii) Allotment of party tickets during elections and the formation of	council of ministers in the states on caste lines.	(iv) Caste conflicts between higher and lower castes or between
dominant castes in various states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh,	Madhya Pradesh and so on.	(v) Violent disputes and agitations over the reservation policy.
B.K. Nehru observed: “The communal electorates (of the British	days) in a vestigal form still remain in the shape of reservations for	the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. They serve to
emphasise caste origin and make people conscious of the caste	in which they were born. This is not conducive to national	integration”5 .
At the state level, the politics is basically a fight between the	major caste groups like Kamma versus Reddy in Andhra Pradesh,	Lingayat versus Vokaligga in Karnataka, Nayar versus Ezhava in
Kerala, Bania versus Patidar in Gujarat, Bhumiar versus Rajput in	Bihar, Jat versus Ahir in Haryana, Jat versus Rajput in Uttar	Pradesh, Kalita versus Ahom in Assam and so on.
4. Linguism	Linguism means love for one’s language and hatred towards other	language-speaking people. The phenomena of linguism, like that
of regionalism, communalism or casteism, is also a consequence	of political process. It has two dimensions: (a) the reorganisation	of states on the basis of language; and (b) the determination of
the official language of the Union.	The creation of the first linguistic state of Andhra out of the then	Madras state in 1953 led to the countrywide demand for the
reorganisation of states on the basis of language. Consequently,	the states were reorganised on a large-scale in 1956 on the basis	of the recommendations made by the States Reorganisation
Commission6 (1953–1955). Even after this, the political map of	India underwent a continuous change due to the pressure of	popular agitations and the political conditions, which resulted in
the bifurcation of existing states like Bombay, Punjab, Assam, and	so on. By the end of 2000, the number of states and union	territories had reached 28 and 7 from that of 14 and 6 in 1956
respectively7 .	The enactment of the Official Language Act (1963) making	Hindi as the Official Language of the Union led to the rise of anti-
Hindi agitation in South India and West Bengal. Then, the Central	government assured that English would continue as an ‘associate’	official language so long as the non-Hindi speaking states desire
it. Moreover, the three-language formula (English, Hindi and a	regional language) for school system is still not being	implemented in Tamil Nadu8. Consequently, Hindi could not
emerge as the lingua franca of the composite culture of India as	desired by the framers of the Constitution.	The problem of linguism got accentuated with the rise of some
NATIONAL INTEGRATION COUNCIL	The National Integration Council (NIC) was constituted in 1961,	following a decision taken at a national conference on ‘unity in
diversity’, convened by the Central government, at New Delhi. It	consisted of the prime minister as chairman, central home	minister, chief ministers of states, seven leaders of political
parties, the chairman of the UGC, two educationists, the	commissioner for SCs and STs and seven other persons	nominated by the prime minister. The council was directed to
examine the problem of national integration in all its aspects and	make necessary recommendations to deal with it. The council	made various recommendations for national integration. However,
these recommendations remained only on paper and no effort	was made either by the Centre or by the states to implement	them.
In 1968, the Central government revived the National	Integration Council. Its size was increased from 39 to 55	members. The representatives of industry, business and trade
unions were also included in it. The council met at Srinagar and	adopted a resolution condemning all tendencies that struck at the	root of national solidarity. It appealed to the political parties,
organisations and the press to mobilise the constructive forces of	society in the cause of national unity and solidarity. It also set up	three committes to report on regionalism, communalism and
linguism respectively. However, nothing tangible was achieved.	In 1980, the Central government again revived the National	Integration Council which had become defunct. Its membership

(i) Bhartiya Kisan Union (in the wheat belt of North India)

(ii) All India Kisan Sabha (the oldest and the largest agrarian

group)

(iii) Revolutionary Peasants Convention (organised by the CPM

in 1967 which gave birth to the Naxalbari Movement)

(iv) Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (Gujarat)

(v) R.V. Sangham (Tamil Nadu)

(vi) Shetkhari Sanghatana (Maharashtra)

(vii) Hind Kisan Panchayat (controlled by the Socialists)

(viii) All-India Kisan Sammelan

(ix) United Kisan Sabha (controlled by the CPM)

4. Professional Associations

These are associations that raise the concerns and demands of

doctors, lawyers, journalists and teachers. Despite various

restrictions, these associations pressurise the government by

various methods including agitations for the improvement of their

service conditions. They include:

(i) Indian Medical Association (IMA)

(ii) Bar Council of India (BCI)

(iii) Indian Federation of Working Journalists (IFWJ)

(iv) All India Federation of University and College Teachers

5. Student Organisations

Various unions have been formed to represent the student

community. However, these unions, like the trade unions, are also

affiliated to various political parties. These are:

(i) Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) (affiliated to BJP)

(ii) All India Students Federation (AISF) (affiliated to CPI)

(iii) National Students Union of India (NSUI) (affiliated to

Congress)

(iv) Student Federation of India (SFI) (affiliated to CPM)

6. Religious Organisations

The organisations based on religion have come to play an

important role in Indian politics. They represent the narrow

communal interest. They include:

(i) Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS)

(ii) Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)

(iii) Jamaat-e-Islami

(iv) Ittehad-ul-Mussalmeen

(v) Anglo-Indian Association

(vi) Associations of the Roman Catholics

(vii) All-India Conference of Indian Christians (viii) Parsi Central

Association

(ix) Shiromani Akali Dal

“The Shiromani Akali Dal should be regarded as more of a

religious pressure group rather than a political party in view of the

fact that it has been concerned more with the mission of saving

the sikh community from being absorbed into the ocean of hindu

society than with fighting for the cause of a sikh homeland”2 .

7. Caste Groups

Like religion, caste has been an important factor in Indian politics.

The competitive politics in many states of the Indian Union is in

fact the politics of caste rivalries: Brahmin versus Non-Brahmin in

Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, Rajput versus Jat in Rajasthan,

Kamma versus Reddy in Andhra, Ahir versus Jat in Haryana,

Rajput in Bihar, Nair versus Ezhava in Kerala and Lingayat versus

Okkaliga in Karnataka3. Some of the caste-based organisations

are:

(i) Nadar Caste Association in Tamil Nadu

(ii) Marwari Association

(iii) Harijan Sevak Sangh

(iv) Kshatriya Maha Sabha in Gujarat

(v) Vanniyakul Kshatriya Sangam

(vi) Kayastha Sabha

8. Tribal Organisations

The tribal organisations are active in MP, Chattisgarh, Bihar,

Jharkhand, West Bengal and the North Eastern States of Assam,

Manipur, Nagaland and so on. Their demands range from reforms

to that of secession from India and some of them are involved in

insurgency activities. The tribal organisations include:

(i) National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN)

(ii) Tribal National Volunteers (TNU) in Tripura

(iii) People’s Liberation Army in Manipur

(iv) All-India Jharkhand

(v) Tribal Sangh of Assam

(vi) United Mizo Federal Organisation

9. Linguistic Groups

Language has been so important factor in Indian politics that it

became the main basis for the reorganisation of states. The

language along with caste, religion and tribe have been

responsible for the emergence of political parties as well as

pressure groups. Some of the linguistic groups are:

(i) Tamil Sangh

(ii) Anjuman Tarraki-i-Urdu

(iii) Andhra Maha Sabha

(iv) Hindi Sahitya Sammelan

(v) Nagari Pracharani Sabha

(vi) Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha

In more recent times, the pressure groups are formed to pursue a

particular ideology, i.e., a cause, a principle or a programme.

These groups include:

(i) Environmental protection groups like Narmada Bachao

Andolan, and Chipko Movement

(ii) Democratic rights organisations

(iii) Civil liberties associations

(iv) Gandhi Peace Foundation

(v) Woman rights organisations

11. Anomic Groups

Almond and Powell observed: “By anomic pressure groups we

mean more or less a spontaneous breakthrough into the political

system from the society such as riots, demonstrations,

assassinations and the like. The Indian Government and

bureaucratic elite, overwhelmed by the problem of economic

development and scarcity of resources available to them,

inevitably acquires a technocratic and anti-political frame of mind,

particularistic demands of whatever kinds are denied legitimacy.

As a consequence interest groups are alienated from the political

system”4. Some of the anomic pressure groups are:

(i) All-India Sikh Student’s Federation.

(ii) Nava Nirman Samithi of Gujarat.

(iii) Naxalite Groups.

(iv) Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).

(v) All Assam Student’s Union.

(vi) United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).

(vii) Dal Khalsa.

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1. G.A. Almond and G.B. Coleman (eds), The Politics of

the Developing Areas, Princeton, (1970), P. 185.

2. J.C. Johari: Indian Government and Politics, Vishal,

Thirteenth Edition, P. 591.

3. Paul Kolenda: Caste in India since Independence (in

Sission, P. 110).

4. G.A. Almond and G.B. Powell: Comparative Politics,

1972, P. 75–76.

78 National Integration

I

ndia is a land of widespread diversities in terms of religion,

language, caste, tribe, race, region and so on. Hence, the

achievement of national integration becomes very essential for

the all-around development and prosperity of the country.

MEANING OF NATIONAL INTEGRATION

Definitions and statements on national integration:

“National integration implies avoidance of divisive movements

that would balkanise the nation and presence of attitudes

throughout the society that give preference to national and public

interest as distinct from parochial interests”1 Myron Weiner.

“National integration is a socio-psychological and educational

process through which a feeling of unity, solidarity and cohesion

develops in the hearts of the people and a sense of common

citizenship or feeling of loyalty to the nation is fostered among

them”2 HA Gani.

“National integration is not a house which could be built by

mortar and bricks. It is not an industrial plan too which could be

discussed and implemented by experts. Integration, on the

contrary, is a thought which must go into the heads of the people.

It is the consciousness which must awaken the people at large”

Dr. S. Radhakrishna.

“National integrations means, and ought to mean, cohesion not

fusion, unity but not uniformity, reconciliation but not merger,

agglomeration but not assimilation of the discrete segments of the

people constituting a political community or state”3 Rasheeduddin

Khan.

To sum-up, the concept of national integration involves political,

economic, social, cultural and psychological dimensions and the

OBSTACLES TO NATIONAL INTEGRATION

Among the major obstacles to national integration include:

1. Regionalism

Regionalism refers to sub-nationalism and sub-territorial loyalty. It

implies the love for a particular region or state in preference to the

country as a whole. There is also subregionalism, that is, love for

a particular region in preference to the state of which the region

forms a part.

Regionalism is “a subsidiary process of political integration in

India. It is a manifestation of those residual elements which do not

find expression in the national polity and national culture, and

being excluded from the centrality of the new polity, express

themselves in political discontent and political exclusionism”4 .

Regionalism is a country-wide phenomenon which manifests

itself in the following six forms:

(i) Demand of the people of certain states for secession from the

Indian Union (like Khalistan, Dravid Nad, Mizos, Nagas and

so on).

(ii) Demand of the people of certain areas for separate statehood

(like Telengana, Bodoland, Uttarkhand, Vidharbha,

Gorkhaland and so on).

(iii) Demand of people of certain Union Territories for full-fledged

statehood (like Manipur, Tripura, Puducherry, Delhi, Goa,

Daman and Diu and so on).

(iv) Inter-state boundary disputes (like Chandigarh and Belgaum)

and riverwater disputes (like Cauvery, Krishna, Ravi-Beas and

so on).

(v) Formation of organisations with regional motives which

advocates a militant approach in pursuing its policies and

goals (like Shiv Sena, Tamil Sena, Hindi Sena, Sardar Sena,

Lachit Sena and so on).

(vi) ‘Sons of the soil theory’ which advocates preference to local

people in government jobs, private jobs, permits and so on.

Their slogan will be Assam for Assamese, Maharashtra for

Maharashtrians and so on.

2. Communalism

Communalism means love for one’s religious community in

preference to the nation and a tendency to promote the communal

interest at the cost of the interest of other religious communities. It

has its roots in the British rule where the 1909, 1919 and 1935

Acts had introduced communal representation for the Muslims,

Sikhs and others.

The communalism got accentuated with the politicisation of

religion. Its various manifestations are:

(i) Formation of political parties based on religion (like Akali Dal,

Muslim League, Ram Rajya Parishad, Hindu Mahasabha,

Shiv Sena and so on).

(ii) Emergence of pressure groups (nonpolitical entities) based

on religion (like RSS, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Jamaat-e-

Islami, Anglo-Indian Christians Association and so on).

(iii) Communal riots (between Hindus and Muslims, Hindus and

Sikhs, Hindus and Christians and so on–Benaras, Lucknow,

Mathura, Hyderabad, Allahabad, Aligarh, Amritsar,

Moradabad and some other places are affected by communal

violence).

(iv) Dispute over religious structures like temples, mosques and

others (The dispute over Ram Janma Bhoomi in Ayodhya

where the kar sevaks had demolished a disputed structure on

December 6, 1992).

The reasons for the persistence of com-munalism include

religious orthodoxy of muslims, role of Pakistan, hindu

chauvinism, government’s inertia, role of political parties and other

groups, electoral compulsions, communal media, socio-economic

factors and so on.

3. Casteism

Casteism implies love for one’s own caste-group in preference to

(i) Formation of political parties on the basis of caste (like

Justice Party in Madras, DMK, Kerala Congress, Republican

Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and so on).

(ii) Emergence of pressure groups (nonpolitical entities) based

on caste (like Nadar Association, Harijan Sevak Sangh,

Kshatriya Mahasabha and so on).

(iii) Allotment of party tickets during elections and the formation of

council of ministers in the states on caste lines.

(iv) Caste conflicts between higher and lower castes or between

dominant castes in various states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh,

Madhya Pradesh and so on.

(v) Violent disputes and agitations over the reservation policy.

B.K. Nehru observed: “The communal electorates (of the British

days) in a vestigal form still remain in the shape of reservations for

the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. They serve to

emphasise caste origin and make people conscious of the caste

in which they were born. This is not conducive to national

integration”5 .

At the state level, the politics is basically a fight between the

major caste groups like Kamma versus Reddy in Andhra Pradesh,

Lingayat versus Vokaligga in Karnataka, Nayar versus Ezhava in

Kerala, Bania versus Patidar in Gujarat, Bhumiar versus Rajput in

Bihar, Jat versus Ahir in Haryana, Jat versus Rajput in Uttar

Pradesh, Kalita versus Ahom in Assam and so on.

4. Linguism

Linguism means love for one’s language and hatred towards other

language-speaking people. The phenomena of linguism, like that

of regionalism, communalism or casteism, is also a consequence

of political process. It has two dimensions: (a) the reorganisation

of states on the basis of language; and (b) the determination of

the official language of the Union.

The creation of the first linguistic state of Andhra out of the then

Madras state in 1953 led to the countrywide demand for the

reorganisation of states on the basis of language. Consequently,

the states were reorganised on a large-scale in 1956 on the basis

of the recommendations made by the States Reorganisation

Commission6 (1953–1955). Even after this, the political map of

India underwent a continuous change due to the pressure of

popular agitations and the political conditions, which resulted in

the bifurcation of existing states like Bombay, Punjab, Assam, and

so on. By the end of 2000, the number of states and union

territories had reached 28 and 7 from that of 14 and 6 in 1956

respectively7 .

The enactment of the Official Language Act (1963) making

Hindi as the Official Language of the Union led to the rise of anti-

Hindi agitation in South India and West Bengal. Then, the Central

government assured that English would continue as an ‘associate’

official language so long as the non-Hindi speaking states desire

it. Moreover, the three-language formula (English, Hindi and a

regional language) for school system is still not being

implemented in Tamil Nadu8. Consequently, Hindi could not

emerge as the lingua franca of the composite culture of India as

desired by the framers of the Constitution.

The problem of linguism got accentuated with the rise of some

NATIONAL INTEGRATION COUNCIL

The National Integration Council (NIC) was constituted in 1961,

following a decision taken at a national conference on ‘unity in

diversity’, convened by the Central government, at New Delhi. It

consisted of the prime minister as chairman, central home

minister, chief ministers of states, seven leaders of political

parties, the chairman of the UGC, two educationists, the

commissioner for SCs and STs and seven other persons

nominated by the prime minister. The council was directed to

examine the problem of national integration in all its aspects and

make necessary recommendations to deal with it. The council

made various recommendations for national integration. However,

these recommendations remained only on paper and no effort

was made either by the Centre or by the states to implement

them.

In 1968, the Central government revived the National

Integration Council. Its size was increased from 39 to 55

members. The representatives of industry, business and trade

unions were also included in it. The council met at Srinagar and

adopted a resolution condemning all tendencies that struck at the

root of national solidarity. It appealed to the political parties,

organisations and the press to mobilise the constructive forces of

society in the cause of national unity and solidarity. It also set up

three committes to report on regionalism, communalism and

linguism respectively. However, nothing tangible was achieved.

In 1980, the Central government again revived the National

Integration Council which had become defunct. Its membership