Judgment

KRISHNA IYER, J.:- Language is speech, sentiment, life literature and other dear values rolled into one and that is why when State policy on language goes awry explosive tensions erupt and courts cannot allow legalism to override realism when asked to quash some sensitive linguistic formula with emotive overtones. This prefatory caveat and its profound implications must be appreciated before we eat the forbidden fruit of policy-making by striking down the Central Governments amendatory notification bearing on language papers for Central Services Examination or the All India Services Examination. The realisation that language is at the root of culture, that communities sometimes sacrifice their very existence for survival of their mother tongue and that tolerance and mutual accommodation on the linguistic front are integral to national integration must persuade the court to keep its hands off the delicate strategic policy of the State relating to the peoples language. Indeed, rich diversity of India and the indispensable unity of the nation make it a linguistic imperative that a spirit of generosity to territorial communities, especially minorities without political pull is