For the first time, a resolution to declare Sindhi, Punjabi, Pashto, and Balochi as national languages was unanimously passed by the Sindh Assembly on Friday.
The resolution, which was tabled by the treasury and the opposition, was also supported by the MQM-Pakistan (MQM-P) members as well.
“Mr Speaker under rule 256 of the Rules Regulation of the Provincial Assembly, 2013, the normal proceedings [shall] be suspended and the motion of this resolution be allowed,” said the permission sought from Sindh Assembly Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani.
After the suspension of normal proceedings of the august house by the speaker, a resolution was moved by Pakistan Peoples Party’s MPA Heer Soho, Grand Democratic Alliance lawmaker Nand Kumar Goklani and others.
“This honorable house of Sindh Assembly congratulates the whole world on International Mother Language Day. Languages are an important source of communication, historical identity, and information about ancient civilizations.
In today’s modern scientific research, it has been proved that the child who gets education in his mother tongue, his intelligence is more developed than other children. Mohanjo Daro, an old sign of human civilization, has also been found written script. This proves that even five thousand years ago we were civilized and educated.
This house while congratulating the Sindhi Language Authority and the Government of Sindh for organizing the successful World Language Conference demands that the mother tongues (Sindhi, Punjabi, Pashto and Balochi) should be considered as national languages along with efforts for the development of mother tongues. Should be graded. Such kind of bill has been pending in the National Assembly for a long time. Request through this House that this Bill be passed,“ said the resolution.
The resolution was passed unanimously by the provincial assembly. MPA Muhammad Hussain of MQM-P has supported the resolution on behalf of his party.
Observers said that after a long process of parliament, political parties have reached on a conclusion to create harmony in the province. In 1972, they added the same assembly passed a bill declaring Sindhi as the official language of the province. But at that time riots erupted in Karachi and Hyderabad against the decision, they added.