The Karnataka government has warned companies and commercial establishments of strict action if people are denied employment or treated unfairly because Kannada is their mother tongue, adding a sharper enforcement dimension to the state’s language policy in Bengaluru and other urban centres.
Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj Thangadagi issued the warning at a state Rajyotsava Awards event in Bengaluru, where Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar presented awards to achievers from different fields. The minister said the government would not tolerate incidents in which Kannada speakers were denied jobs because of their language identity.
Thangadagi referred to a recent statement by a woman who alleged that she had been refused employment after introducing an individual in Kannada. He said that if such an incident occurred again, or if Kannada was ignored, the government would take action. The minister did not provide details of the specific case or identify the organisation involved.
The warning extends beyond recruitment. Thangadagi said information technology companies, industries and commercial establishments must give appropriate priority to Kannada. He also said the government would enforce the requirement that Kannada account for 60% of the language used on commercial shop signboards.
According to the minister, amendments have been made to the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development Act to support the signboard requirement. He said the amended law would be implemented effectively and that action would be taken against establishments that disregard Kannada. The statement places language compliance within the wider responsibilities of businesses operating in Karnataka’s commercial and public environments.
Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said Kannada should be the dominant language in Karnataka’s public life while other languages should be respected. He said treating Kannada as the state’s principal language should not mean hating other languages, adding that all languages should receive respect. He called for Kannada to be used naturally in offices, businesses and public life.
Shivakumar also said Kannada should grow as a language of artificial intelligence, science, start-ups and the digital era. He urged people to use and develop the language and said the government’s objective was to create a situation in which learning Kannada became necessary.
The statements come as Bengaluru’s workplaces, technology companies, retail establishments and commercial streets operate in a multilingual environment. The government’s announcement links employment practices, public-facing business communication and statutory signage to the state’s language policy, although the officials did not outline a new enforcement mechanism, penalty schedule or complaint process at the event.
The programme also saw the presentation of Rajyotsava Awards to 66 recipients. Five of the 71 selected awardees—Kagodu Thimappa, M.R. Jaishankar, Rajasekharamurthy, Annadaneshwara Mahashivayogi and Father Joseph—were absent. The chief minister said the awards would be presented to them later at their offices or residences because of reasons including ill health and overseas travel.
