Part XVII is a compilation of

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

s pertaining to the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

as a country and the union of states that it is made of. This part of the constitution consists of Articles on Official Language.

Chapter I - Official Language of the Union

Chapter 1 covers Articles 343 and 344, and settles for two

official language An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...

s of India -

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

Which written in

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the ...

script and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

.Constitution of India It also writes that the international form of the

Indian numerals Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

should be used as the official numeral system. It also places a responsibility on the

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Mur ...

to support the implementation and progressive use of Hindi, rather than English, as the official language of India, as well gives the power of imposing restrictions on the usage of English for official purposes in India. The President of India is also given a time of fifteen years, from the time of the establishing of the Constitution, to phase out English in favour of Hindi, a right yet to be exercised. The chapter also writes that a committee consisting of 30 people - 20 from the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-p ...

(lower house) and 10 from the

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

(upper house) should be formed ensuring that the previously mentioned responsibilities are carried out by the President.

Chapter II - Regional Languages

Chapter 2 covers articles 345–347, and writes that the regions of India are eligible to use any of the

official languages of India There is no national language in India. However, article 343(1) of the Indian constitution specifically mentions that, "The official language of the Union shall be Hindi in Devanagari script. The form of numerals to be used for the official pur ...

for official purposes. It also acknowledges the possibility of a regional language being adopted and becoming an official language of India, if the President deems that a large enough proportion of the population of India desires it.

Chapter III - Language of the Supreme Court, High Courts, etc.

Chapter 3 covers articles 348 and 349, and writes that the official language of the Supreme Court of India, the

High Courts of India The high courts of India are the highest courts of appellate jurisdiction in each state and union territory of India. However, a high court exercises its original civil and criminal jurisdiction only if the subordinate courts are not authoriz ...

as well as any authoritative legal texts should be English. It also acknowledges that the Governor of a State may, if authorized by the President, authorize the usage of Hindi in the previous situations. Article 348.(2):

Chapter IV - Special Directives

Chapter 4 covers articles 350, 350A, 350B and 351. It settles that any person may submit a representation for the redress of grievances in any of the official languages of India. It also settles that the government of India should take measures to preserve the various minority language of India by building instructional facilities for teaching children at a primary level. It also writes that the President should appoint a Special Officer to ensure that these instructional facilities are built and that the previous measures are indeed carried out. Lastly, the chapter writes that the government of India should ensure the spread of Hindi, as well as promoting the enrichment and development of the language.

References

;Sources * * Part XVII text from wikisource Part 17 {{India-law-stub