Global Konkani Forum calls for unity against Sahitya Akademi’s script discrimination

MARGAO: In a clarion call, the Global Konkani Forum (GKF) has urged all Konkani script users from across the Konkan belt to unite against the Sahitya Akademi’s decision to grant official script status solely to Devanagari, which undermines the significance of other Konkani scripts and marginalises the diverse linguistic heritage within the Konkani-speaking community.

At the programme held in Agasaim on World Konkani Day, GKF urged them to collectively address the inequality and discrimination imposed by the Sahitya Akademi.

GKF president Kennedy Afonso highlighted that the Sahitya Akademi’s decision contradicts the principles of equality enshrined in Article 14 and the rights of minorities protected under Article 29(1). 

He emphasised that imposing one script over others is a significant obstacle to the unity of the Konkani-speaking community. 

GKF acknowledged that many Konkani associations in the past across the Konkan belt, made attempts to fight against the injustice done to their scripts. However, when people in Kannada rose to fight the injustice on the people in Goa, as other States were sleeping, and vice versa. 

“Today, on World Konkani Day, it’s important to understand that we need to unite as one, against the Devanagari forces, to fight and do justice to our respective scripts. Today, as the world celebrates to commemorate the inclusion of Konkani in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, we invite all script associations of Konkani, to come together in unity to join hands with Global Konknni Forum, to take the battle to its logical conclusion, by taking the Sahitya Akademi head on in the Courts of law,” he added. 

He questioned that who is the Sahitya Akademi Konkani Advisory Board to determine and impose on others, which Konkani script should be the official language?  This should be decided democratically by the people who use the different scripts of Konkani language.

“What are the criteria for the Konkani Advisory Board to justify Devanagari as the sole official language of Konkani, when as per the Census of 2011; Devanagari is used by only 12.7 % of the Konkani speaking people in India, with 87% by other Konkani scripts.  Devanagari comes in third place as the most used script, with Kannada script in first place and Roman Script in second place,” said Afonso. 

He said that the argument used by the Konkani Advisory Board is that giving other scripts official recognition will be deterrent to Devanagari, as the Constitution of India gives special recognition to Devanagari is a an outright lie, as the Constitution of India does not give preference to any script when it was included in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

Claiming further it was only way back in 1981, that the Konknni Advisory Board, comprising of staunch Devanagari supporters like Ravindra Kelekar, Uday Bhembre, Chandrakant Keni, Manoharai B Sardesai, B Borkar, D Suktankar, William Da Silva, R V Pandit , Fr Antonio Pereira, V P Saldanha and Puroshotam Mallya, passed a unanimous decision to recommend to the Sahitya Akademi to make Devanagari as the sole official script of Konkani.

This decision taken in 1981 is the obstacle that prevents Sahitya Akademi, which acts on the instructions of the Konkani Advisory Board, said Afonso. 

According to GKF, choosing of the new Konkani is also fixed by the outgoing Advisory Board, as they select the applicants, and then send these names to higher authorities. The Devanagari lobby knows that if they lose their hold on the Advisory Board, the new one could reverse the decision taken in 1981.

Bearing all these factors in mind, GKF has requested all associations of Konkani in Kannada, Malyalam, and PersoArabic, to come together in unity to launch a consolidated effort to break the hold of the Devanagari Lobby in the Konknni Advisory Board, and to challenge the decision of Sahitya Akademi to grant official script status to Devanagari only.