New Delhi, Delhi, September 23: The Rajya Sabha passed the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Bill, 2020 on Wednesday.  On Tuesday, the Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.  Home Minister Amit Shah thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "commitment towards restoring the culture of Jammu and Kashmir through this bill". He called it a momentous day for the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Introducing the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Bill, 2020, Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said it was a demand of the people of Jammu and Kashmir that the language they speak should be the official language. Jammu And Kashmir Official Languages Bill Passed by Lok Sabha: Amit Shah Hails Passage Of The Bill, Calls it 'Momentous Day'.

Here's All About the Bill: 

The bill recognises Kashmiri, Dogri and Hindi, apart from the existing Urdu and English, as the official languages in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Sikh and Gujjar communities have protested the exclusion of Punjabi and Gojri languages from the bill.

In Rajya Sabha today, Shiromani Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral said, "Unfortunate that Punjabi isn't being included in this Bill, as an official language in J&K. Punjabi is the richest & oldest language of north India, with its own script Gurmukhi."

He further added, "J&K was a part of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's empire and even after him the first Dogra Maharaja was a general of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. From that time onwards lakhs of Punjabis have settled in J&K. In the constitution of J&K, Punjabi was there as their official language."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 23, 2020 02:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).