Hindi nothing but a link language, local language is our identity: Karnataka Minister Ashwathnarayan

BJP's Ashwathnarayan is the latest to join the raging debate over Hindi in Karnataka
Bangalore: Karnataka Minister CN Ashwathnarayan on Friday said that Hindi is nothing but a link language and that his government was there to promote the local language as it is their identity. "We need to love our language and at the same time, respect other languages and coexist. Hindi is nothing but a link language but we're here to promote the local language as it is our identity," was quoted as saying by ANI.
Ashwathnarayan is the latest to join the raging debate over Hindi in Karnataka.
The whole controversy began after Kannada actor Kiccha Sudeep while speaking at an event said Hindi is no longer a national language. Sudeep said that Bollywood is making pan-India films but it is struggling to find success. He then said that their films were going everywhere. He said when asked about the success of Kannada film ‘KGF Chapter 2’.
Reacting to this, Bollywood actor-director Ajay Devgn tweeted in Hindi saying if Hindi is not our national language, "then why do you release films made in your mother tongue after dubbing them in Hindi? "Hindi is our mother tongue, and our national language, and it will always be. Jana Gana Mana,” he said.
On Thursday, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that Sudeep was right as the regional language is the most important. “What Kiccha Sudeep said was correct. A regional language is the most important as a state is formed on linguistic bases,” the chief minister said while speaking to reporters.
He was soon joined by former chief minister and Congress leader Siddaramaiah. Replying to Devgn on Twitter, the former Karnataka chief minister said: "Hindi was never & will never be our National Language. It is the duty of every Indian to respect the linguistic diversity of our Country. Each language has its own rich history for its people to be proud of. I am proud to be a Kannadiga."
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