SHILLONG: In a symbolic protest and taking a cue from Governor Ganga Prasad who addressed the MLAs in Hindi in the Assembly, the lone Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) member Adelbert Nongrum said it is a golden opportunity for him to speak in Khasi while he takes part in the discussion on the Governor’s address on Monday.
“I am happy that I will be able to initiate discussion in Khasi language since the Governor has given an opportunity to use other languages,” he told reporters.
The KHNAM legislator also expressed surprise over the use of Hindi by the Governor and said the Centre should have sent a person as Governor who can speak in English.
Congress MLA Ampareen Lyngdoh, who walked out of the House after the Governor spoke for seven minutes, said the translated audio version was not simultaneously provided to the members as she wanted to listen to the Governor’s address in English.
“It is unfair for a legislator to have only a written speech in English as several times, the Governor had also skipped important points from the English version of the speech when he addressed the members,” she said.
Lyngdoh said that when she was a minister frequenting Delhi on various occasions, she had protested against the use of Hindi in official functions. “We should not tolerate this.
It is a bad precedence,” Lyngdoh said.
The former minister said it was a sort of oppression as the Governor is stubbornly pretending that he could not read in English.
“This is a bullying approach. I walked out in protest so that my children and grandchildren should not accuse me of keeping silent,” Lyngdoh said.
She also pointed out that the English copy of the speech was not placed on record by the Speaker and hence, she wanted to know whether the Hindi speech of the Governor or the English copy should be taken as the official document.
She also pointed out that stenographers in the Assembly were not able to follow Hindi.
First-time MLA and Congress member George Lyngdoh also termed it as unprecedented and said he was not able to catch up with the speech of the Governor. “Maybe the chief minister wants to inculcate one India one language pattern,” he said.
