Saying that diversity has held India together against all odds, Congress MLA and former Minister Krishna Byre Gowda on Tuesday argued that any effort to enforce uniformity in the country was the “height of stupidity” which citizens would not accept.
“It is a matter of concern that there has been a threat to freedom and democracy in the country of late. Any effort to curb them by enforcing uniformity in place of diversity goes against the principles of the Constitution,” Mr. Gowda said, while participating in a debate on the Constitution in the Assembly.
“The only way to ensure the survival of the country is to celebrate its diversity. The country will remain united as long as its diversity is protected,” he said. He added that perhaps the Indian Constitution was the only Constitution that had become a guiding light for other countries in celebrating diversity.
Referring to the complex nature of the country’s diversity, he pointed out that India had a population of nearly 132 crore, as against 75 crore of all 52 European countries put together. “The country has 1,600 languages and over 2,000 ethnic groups, apart from innumerable castes,” he said. “When the diversity is so complex, is it possible to enforce uniformity?”
He appealed against tinkering with the edifice on which the country’s character is built.
