The Supreme Court has stayed a Nainital High Court order questioning non-English-speaking officials’ eligibility for election duty. This move has reignited a national debate over language bias in Indian governance.
Dehradun: The Supreme Court of India has put a temporary hold on a recent decision by the Nainital High Court, which had raised questions about whether an official who cannot speak English should be allowed to perform election duties.
This decision by the apex court has once again started a big debate across the country about the dominance of English over Hindi, especially in government services and public life.
It has also raised important concerns about whether knowing English should be necessary for governance in a country like India where many languages are spoken.
The High Court’s July 18 order was connected to a case about alleged irregularities in the voter list of Budhlakot Gram Panchayat in Nainital district.
The petitioner in the case had claimed that several people who were not residents of Uttarakhand, including individuals from Odisha, had been wrongly added to the voter list.
During the hearing, the High Court had asked a key question:
“Can an officer who is unable to speak English effectively control election duties?”
Following this, senior administrative officers — Additional District Magistrate of Nainital, Vivek Rai, and Sub-Divisional Magistrate of Kainchi Dham, Monika — had to appear personally before the court.
The State Election Commission, concerned about the wide impact of the order, quickly moved the Supreme Court with a special leave petition (SLP), asking for relief from the High Court’s direction.
On Monday, the Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, and Justices Vinod Chandran and N.V. Anjaria, stayed the High Court’s decision.
The court also sent notices to the petitioner, Akash Bora, and 53 others who were said to be non-residents but were found on the voter list. Advocate Sanjay Bhatt, representing the State Election Commission, said,
“The Supreme Court has issued notices to the opposing parties.”
This legal development has triggered strong reactions and statements from people across different fields — activists, educators, and journalists — all arguing against the idea that English should be seen as superior or necessary for public roles.
“This is nothing but a colonial hangover,”
said well-known social activist Anup Nautiyal, who strongly opposed the High Court’s view. He further said,
“We need to move beyond this English-Hindi dichotomy and the perception that ‘only English will be spoken’. As the world flattens, knowledge is also democratising. It is not a preserve of a certain community only.”
Senior educationist and former Principal of DAV College, Dehradun, Dr Devendra Bhasin, also gave his opinion, saying, “It is essential for everyone to respect Hindi. The development of a country happens by adopting its own language in practice; we have the examples of China and Japan.”
Veteran journalist Kiran Kant reflected the ground reality in government services and said, “In our state, 90% of PCS officers are Hindi medium educated. If we don’t speak Hindi in our own country, where will we speak it?”
The debate has clearly moved beyond just language skills. Many people feel that such orders show a mindset that still treats English as a superior language, which can affect the dignity and opportunities of those who are educated in regional languages.
Anup Nautiyal made another important point saying,
“The relationship between English and Hindi should not be positioned as a versus battle but rather instead of being competitive, it should be complementary; English and Hindi or else English or Hindi is the right way to go ahead in the coming years.”
Dr Bhasin added,
“In our country, if someone knows Hindi, it is not right that their voice should not be heard.”
Highlighting a major contradiction, Kiran Kant said,
“Where even the ‘Gita’ oath during trials is taken in Hindi. This dispute should not have even come out of court.”
The case and the debate surrounding it have now taken national importance. The Supreme Court’s intervention has put a pause on what many see as a discriminatory approach.
Case title:
State Election Commission, Uttarakhand vs. Akash Bora & Others
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