The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a public interest litigation seeking directions to the Centre to constitute a commission to examine and recommend making Hindi an official language of the country’s top court, observing that language reforms are administrative matters that cannot be directed through judicial orders.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana also pointed out that granting the petitioner’s request would necessitate an amendment to the Constitution.
Linguistic Reforms Must Be Phased and Administrative
Addressing the plea, Chief Justice Kant observed that the apex court is already implementing linguistic changes on the administrative front in a gradual, structured manner. He explained that such transformations develop through incremental policy steps rather than court mandates.
The Chief Justice highlighted that the Supreme Court has already started providing concise summaries of all its law reports in Hindi and plans to extend the initiative to other regional languages. He affirmed that the institution remains dedicated to honoring regional tongues and upholding the nation’s linguistic heritage.
Petitioner Urged Panel Formation Under Constitutional Provisions
The petition, filed by Brahmeshwar Nath Mishra, had sought an order instructing the Union government to form a dedicated commission to evaluate and propose the adoption of Hindi as the apex court’s official language.
Representing Mishra, counsel cited various provisions of the Constitution to argue that the Centre could be directed to establish such an advisory body. Even as the bench raised institutional and constitutional hurdles, counsel maintained the request for at least a directive to set up the commission.
The bench declined to grant any relief and dismissed the petition.
