Lok Sabha Question No. 449 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-07-21
Subject: Use of Hindi and Regional Languages in Legal Education
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Unmesh Bhaiyyasaheb Patil, Heena Vijaykumar Gavit, Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhepatil, Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Krishna Pal Singh Yadav, Shrikant Eknath Shinde

## Government of India Ministry of Law & Justice Department of Legal Affairs

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## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 449

## TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 21 st  JULY, 2023

## Use of Hindi and Regional languages in Legal Education

449. Shri Unmesh Bhaiyyasaheb Patil:

Dr.Heena Vijaykumar Gavit:

Dr.Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil:

Prof. Rita Bahuguna Joshi:

Dr. Krishna Pal Singh Yadav:

Dr.Shrikant Eknath Shinde:

Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:

- a) whether the Government proposes to undertake any steps to promote the use of Hindi and other regional languages in legal education;
- b) if  so,  the  details  of  the  progress  on  the  digitization  of  a  legal  glossary  in  various Indian languages;
- c) the details of the progress on the Government's initiative to identify frequently used words  in  the  legal  documents  and  creating  a  transitive  vocabulary/common  core vocabulary by coining words from common roots which would be adaptable by all the Indian languages; and
- d) whether  the  Government  plans  to  employ  institutes  and  professionals  to  translate legal terminology into regional languages and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

(a)  and  (b)  : The  Department  of  Higher  Education  has  informed  that  the  National Education Policy, 2020 in its para 20.4 inter-alia states that the curricula for legal studies must reflect socio-cultural contexts along with, in an evidence-based manner, the history of  legal  thinking,  principles  of  justice,  the  practice  of  jurisprudence,  and  other  related content  appropriately  and  adequately.  State  institutions  offering  law  education  must consider offering bilingual education for future lawyers and judges - in English and in the language of the State in which the institution is situated. In this regard, a committee under the chairmanship of  Hon'ble Chief Justice of India (Retd.) Shri S.A. Bobde has also been constituted by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to recommend measures to enhance the use of Hindi and other Regional languages in legal education.

Also, the Ministry of Law and Justice is promoting use of Hindi and other regional languages. A glossary of 65000 legal terms in Hindi has been compiled and is available to the public in a searchable format on an online platform.

(c)  and  (d):  The  Ministry  of  Law  and  Justice  has  in  addition  put  on  its  website  a translation of newly added words and expressions, besides glossary related to custom and excise  duties,  words  used  in  jurisprudence.  To  simplify  the  ease  of  understanding  of Arabic and Persian words used in Indian laws, the Ministry has also placed on its website Hindi  equivalents  of  such  words,  besides  Latin-Hindi  glossary  of  words  with  English translation, used in law.