Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Language is important' that was published in 'In New Bombay'

Language is important

During the general body meeting the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) commissioner Dr. Ramaswamy N. walked out of the house when the Leader of the House Ravindra Ithape used abusive language and said that the NMMC administration is paralysed and they don’t do any constructive work, they only have the habit to get a pat on their back.

If Ravindra Ithape genuinely felt that the municipal commissioner was wrong then he could have explained in civilized language the wrong that the commissioner had done and how it should be rectified. That would be civilized and parliamentary behavior and everyone would have appreciated it. There was absolutely no need to use abusive language. The fact that municipal commissioner did not abuse back but quietly left the general body meeting like a gentleman is something that should be appreciated.

In any sphere of life, language is important. A person who speaks in abusive language is condemned even if he is speaking the truth, while the man who speaks like a gentleman is adored even if he is speaking a lie.

In every municipal corporation, we find such clashes between political group and municipal administration. When the city residents make a noise about certain issue, the political group will not hesitate to blame the administration and the administration in turn will try to convince the media and public that they don’t receive enough cooperation from the political group.

Ravindra Ithape said that Ramaswami N was getting the pat on his back for the work that somebody else was doing. According to him a road besides the nallah was constructed by CIDCO and Ramaswami N was trying to steal the credit from the government agency. Even if this allegation by Ravindra Ithape is true, it is not so big an issue that should have provoked Ithape to use abusive language. He should have been aware of the sanctity of the place where he was speaking. He should have been aware of the fact that he is a public representative. By using abusive language, he has failed to observe the decorum which one needs to observe while speaking in an important meeting like General Body Meeting inside a sacred place like Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation. This is not a good example he is setting to the people whom he is representing or the younger generation who look at him as their idol.