The onset of the Hindi-Urdu controversy of 1867 saw the appearance of Sir Syed as a political leader of the Muslim community. Sir Syed perceived Urdu as the lingua franca of Muslims. Sir Syed promoted Urdu through his own writings. The schools established by Sir Syed imparted education in the Urdu medium. Under Sir Syed, Western work translated into Urdu by Scientific Society.
Sir Syed exclaimed that “Urdu was the language of gentry and Hindi that of the Vulgar.” He got aggressive response from Hindu leaders because they didn’t like his remarks about Hindi. The success of the Hindi movement led Sir Syed to further advocate Urdu as the symbol of the Muslim heritage and as the language of all Indian Muslims.
Sir Syed’s followers such as Mohsin-ul-Mulk and Maulvi Abdul Haq developed organizations such as the Urdu Defence Association and the Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu, committed to the continuation of Urdu. To Muslims in northern and western India, Urdu had become an integral part of cultural and political identity. Urdu and Hindi division further provoked communal conflict between Muslim and Hindu in India.
No comments:
Post a Comment