German envoy meets Sanskrit teachers, Batra too present

Steiner had sought a meeting with the SSS, which had moved the Delhi High Court alleging that the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan introduced German as a third language replacing Sanskrit, to seek cooperation for promotion of the two languages.

The SSS claimed Batra was present at the meeting merely because they were using “his office space”.

“We had very cordial discussions. He asked us why we were against German and we explained to him that it was not German that we were against, but that we only wanted to ensure our National Education Policy and Three Language Formula were not violated. He was satisfied with what we said,” D K Jha, president of the Sanskrit teachers body, told The Indian Express.

“Batraji had no role to play (in the meeting)…. he did not contribute to the discussion at all,” Jha asserted.

The Ambassador, it has been learnt, made it clear that he was not seeking a solution from the SSS, and the solution would be found within the government framework.

During the meeting, which lasted for more than one hour, both the sides asserted that they were on the “same page”, sources said. They also agreed that the two languages could “co-exist”.

The German delegation sought more cooperation for promotion of the two languages with Steiner proposing a conference for promotion of German and Sanskrit for fostering closer cultural ties, to which both sides agreed.

After the meeting, Steiner tweeted: “In-depth exchange with Sanskrit Shikshak Sangh leaders on Sanskrit & German in very friendly atmosphere.”

“Sanskrit Shikshak Sangh supported my idea to organize, early 2015, conference on Indo-Germanic language family (sic),” he said in another tweet.  This meeting comes a few days after German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised the issue with PM Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Brisbane.