Bengali must be respected, says Amartya Sen, calls harassment of Bengalis unfortunate
Amartya Sen
on Thursday said the Bengali language, born in the 11th century, needs to be respected adding that it was unfortunate if Bengalis were being harassed in other states.
Sen was speaking to reporters at his ancestral home in Santiniketan's Pratichi, accompanied by his daughter Nandana Dev Sen and granddaughter Meghla.
"Our Constitution clearly states that Indians have the right to live and work in any part of the country. And this is not a regional right. If Bengalis are being harassed in other parts of the country, it is unfortunate. It would be equally unfortunate if people from other states are similarly harassed," Sen said.
"This is not a question of Bengalis, Marwaris or Punjabis. People should be respected, and their right to work with dignity should be valued. If someone from Bengal is harassed in Odisha or Rajasthan, then it is objectionable," said the 92-year-old economist.
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Asked if the issue of Bengalis being harassed in other states needed to be discussed, he said there was no need for taking it up as a separate issue.
"Anything can be discussed. But the fact remains that the Bengali language, which was born in the 11th century, needs to be respected. It is rich in poetry and literature. People like Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam wrote and expressed themselves in Bengali," he said. "We cannot ignore this. But it often happens that a language does not get its due respect. It faces huge discrimination. It goes without saying that everyone should have the freedom to speak in their own language.
There is no need to fight over this," Sen added.
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