Karnataka had adopted the
three-language formula for education in schools since the linguistic reorganization of states in 1956. Strong opposition to
Hindi was witnessed in the 1960s and '70s, leading to Kannada speakers leaning towards
English. This created a wide incompatibility between languages used for state administration and education in Karnataka. Sanskrit was the first language at the time in Karnataka high schools, making the state language, Kannada, the third choice, with no requirement that students learn the language spoken by the majority population in high school. Matters came to a head after a series of changes to the statuses of the various languages.
D. Devaraj Urs, chiefminister of the state from 1972 to 1977 and 1978–80, moved Kannada (and other languages) to the first and second language groups, and Sanskrit to the third; when he lost power, in 1980,
R. Gundu Rao moved Sanskrit back to the first. The result was widespread protests, and Rao's government set up a committee, headed by
Vinayaka Krishna Gokak. The committee published its report in January 1981, and its recommendations included that Sanskrit not be included as a first language, and that Kannada be the only first language taught at the high school level, and that it be mandatory after Class 3 in primary education. A popular uprising supported the conclusions of the report, with actor
Rajkumar assuming a leading position. Seven people were killed by police during the protests, but the popular pressure made the government yield and adopt the committee's recommendations. "Prolonged agitation" by those who favored Kannada led to a decision by the Karnataka government in 1982 to accord "first language" status to Kannada, and make its teaching mandatory in primary schools. The order was challenged by linguistic minorities and their educational institutions; the state's High Court struck the order down in 1989. == See also ==