Writing in October 1947, Mahatma Gandhi warned that to confine onesel…

Writing in October 1947, Mahatma Gandhi warned that to confine oneself to Hindi or Urdu would be:

Answer & explanation

Correct answer: option 4

The correct answer is Option (4) → a crime against intelligence and the spirit of patriotism

Option (1) a step that would weaken the provincial languages of the south — Incorrect. The fear that Hindi would hurt the provincial languages was raised later by Durgabai from Madras.

Option (2) a break from the Congress decision of the 1930s on Hindustani — Incorrect. The Congress had accepted Hindustani in the 1930s, but Gandhi did not describe narrowing it as a break from that decision.

Option (3) a delay in replacing English for all official purposes — Incorrect. Keeping English for fifteen years came from the 1949 Language Committee. Gandhi did not speak of English here.

Option (4) a crime against intelligence and the spirit of patriotism — Correct. Gandhi called a narrow choice of Hindi or Urdu a crime against intelligence and the spirit of patriotism. He wanted a rich Hindustani open to many sources.

NCERT (2026-27): “5. The Language of the Nation …
A few months before his death Mahatma Gandhi reiterated his views on the language question: This Hindustani should be neither Sanskritised Hindi nor Persianised Urdu but a happy combination of both. It should also freely admit words wherever necessary from the different regional languages and also assimilate words from foreign languages, provided that they can mix well and easily with our national language. Thus our national language must develop into a rich and powerful instrument capable of expressing the whole gamut of human thought and feelings. To confine oneself to Hindi or Urdu would be a crime against intelligence and the spirit of patriotism.”