The Problem

1. Primary Education Through Mother - Tongue Sanskrit :

The Government of Uttar - Pradesh in its G.O. No. A-8435- XV -340 / 53 dated 20.10.58 made provisions for the appointment of one instructor for the minority language in its schools, if forty pupils in the whole school or ten pupils in a class of that language are there. The Director Education, Uttar - Pradesh in his letter No. L / 71-62 dated 18.5.62 addressed, to all District Inspectors of Schools asked the - masters of the primary schools aided or maintained by the Local Bodies, to accept the application for advance registration on separate form on behalf of each student of such linguistic-minority group. Any particular language was not mentioned in the letter. Similarly G.O. No. A.she. 6/12/4-63-7/ Ra Ekikaran, dated 6.11.71 confirmed the policy of the Government by saying:

‘It is the policy of the government that facility of teaching through their Mother tongue should be given to children at primary stage from class one to fifth... In the areas where there is demand for teaching through Urdu medium, arrangements should be made for Urdu teaching. A column in the admission form.....
This G.O. is not exclusively for any particular minority-language. Urdu has been mentioned here as an illustration and emphasis only. 

Efforts made for the advance-registration for Sanskrit MatriBhashi-s (SMBs) students for the next academic session proved futile as the Head Masters of the Basic primary schools refused to accept the applications saying that there are no orders for teaching through Sanskrit medium. Therefore, applications of twenty students per school of different Zila Parishads were presented to the concerned Basic Siksha Adhikaris (BSA-s) of the districts for advance registration. But they also refused to accept the application. They did not  agree to accept the difference between the education through Sanskrit as Mother- tongue and the education of the Sanskrit Pathashalas. 

So, though on one hand the advance registration of S.M.B. students in the Basic primary schools was pursued at different levels by Manoyoga, an organisation of Sanskrit Matri Bhasi-s, on the other arrangements were made later on for the education of S.M.B. children through our own sister organisation Bal Gopal Sangathan. For keeping the S.M.B-s in the main stream of the nation and providing them the same education as is in the government Local Bodies schools, the same curriculum and syllabus was followed. The Adhyaksha Basic Shiksha Parishad/Director of Education, Uttar - Pradesh was requested  to  admit the S.M.B. students to the examination of class V of the Parishad. The request was not conceded. Inspite of all the efforts of 'Manoyoga', the Government did not take any action in respect of S.M.B. children as per its declared policy for the arrangement of providing Basic education to S.M.B-s children in their Mother- tongue.

2. USURPATION OF PROPERTY - TRUSTS :  
In fact, S.M.B-s are economically not dependent on any government. Prior to Independence, education and / or maintenance of the Sanskrit students, along with the S.M.B-s, was generally provided by individual donations by the then ruling native states or from the financial resources of the Trusts etc. established for the purpose by the society. But the situation changed thereafter. The Sanskrit Commission, appointed by the Government of India which submitted its report on 30.11.1957 to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the then Education Minister, drew the attention of the Government towards the usurpation and misutilization of the resources meant for Sanskrit and recommended measures to check the deprivation. The following six paragraphs from the report are reproduced below:
"The commission desires to bring to the notice of the Government that there are in the country a large number of Endowments specifically earmarked for Sanskrit  (including the Vedas), as also considerable  surplus funds available with the Religious Trusts, Temples and other similar Foundations, which, if properly tackled, can be legitimately used towards the implementation of  the proposals made in this Report for the organisation, promotion and improvement of Sanskrit studies".

"As many of such endowments are either moribund or frozen or mis-managed or diverted for purposes not consistent with their original object and as the surplus of Religious Trusts referred to above are either unutilized or diverted for secular purposes, this Commission urges upon the Government to take steps to institute, through the Central Sanskrit Board  or some other competent agency, a full enquiry into such Endowments, set right their administration, make them operative, help them to realise the proceeds, and redirect the diverted funds of Temples etc., towards the proper cultivation of the Veda, Itihas-Puran, Agama, Dharma and branches of Sanskrit study related to the original objectives of the Endowments".

 "The commission recommends that the Central Government should pass a suitable legislation prohibiting the diversion of funds earmarked for Sanskrit studies to other charitable purposes even with the concurrence of the trustees and after the orders of the courts. This legislation should further prohibit the diversion of the surplus funds of the Religious Institutions like Mathas and Temples to secular charitable purposes and should insist upon the utilization of these for promoting Sanskrit studies, which are broadly speaking regarded as religious objects".

"The commission recommends that where, as a result  of the abolition of Estates, Zamindaries and merger of former Native States and Principalities, the maintenance of Sanskrit studies provided for in the previous setup has been adversely effected, the Central and State Governments should take special care to ensure the continuance of the support which Sanskrit used to receive from its former patrons, and that the Government should also honor in full the commitments of former Princes and Zamindars, in respect of the promotion of Sanskrit, Vedic studies etc.". (XI.2-6)

"That the surplus of Temple funds  which might be available, should be utilised for the maintenance of schools for the teaching of the Kantha-patha of the Vedas; that, in those parts of India where the Oral Tradition of the Veda has died out, authorities of educational and religious Institutions should take steps to revive it; that the Research Institutes working In the field of the Veda should, wherever possible, utilize the services of the Pandits who have preserved the Oral tradition of the Vedas;  that special attention should be paid to the tradition of the Samveda, which is important from the point of view of Indian Music also, as well as to the tradition of the Atherveda, which has become almost extinct (at present being current only in a few families of Nagar Brahmans in Gujarat); and that the Vedic Endowments, such as those in the Deccan and South India, which are facing difficulties in one way or another, should be helped by the Governments to rehabilitate themselves in the matter of realising their annual incomes and utilizing them".(x,46-51,53)

"Where the traditional Institutions depend upon private endowments, old or comparatively recent, it is found in several cases that there is not only an inadequacy of resources but the endowments themselves are mismanaged and great difficulty is experienced in realising their proceeds. Several persons interested in Sanskrit learning, who appeared before us, gave names and numbers of Sanskrit endowments in the neighborhood which were lying defunct and in fructuous. The attention of the commission was also drawn to more serious cases of diversion by authorities of such endowments to non-Sanskritic purposes, such as the establishment of modern English Schools" (Chapter 3 Para 8).

During the last about forty - five years, after the submission of the Sanskrit Commission Report the conditions have worsened and nothing has been done to honor the commitment of the former Rulers and Zamindars, Talluquedars and the creators of the Trust. Even the report of the Commission which was submitted in English and for which the Commission recommended that a brief Sanskrit version be published, has not been honored and fulfilled till now. However after twenty - two years of the submission of the report, in June 1979 a Hindi version of the report was published by the U.P Sanskrit Academy. It is important to mention that in the Preface of the Hindi version of the report, the Adhyaksha of the Sanskrit Academy, has drawn the attention of the Government  to take steps against the diversion of the funds to other purposes, the resource of the Trusts ment  for Sanskrit. But nothing has been done. The Adhyaksha mentioned that …  …………….few of these Trusts are either non-functional or their money is being used for English education against the wishes of the Donor. It is a serious matter which we can not ignore. It is the duty  of the Government that in the interest of Sanskrit education, it get such criminal trusts surveyed through its own means and resources and make such laws, that the income of these funds devoted to Sanskrit, could properly be used for Sanskrit education. The execution of this recommendation of the Commission will definitely prove helpful in promoting Sanskrit education and promoting its honour". 

In an effort to provide boarding and lodging facilities, teaching - aids and other educational materials to the Sanskrit-matri-bhashi students, Manoyoga contacted many Trusts and Endowments meant for Sanskrit. Their response was mostly of ignorance, helplessness, in-difference or aggressive, offensive, harassing including threat for  probing the matter. Generally it was found that  against the objective of the Trust the property was being used for the other purposes (including the benefit of the Trustees) or it has passed into adverse possession or involved in litigation, or the trustees do not take interest due to personal reasons or fear of undue pressure. The S.M.B. beneficiaries have been deprived of their own economic resources of education and maintenance. 

The facts that as per the wishes of the creators of the Trust and their objectives, the beneficiaries of the Trusts and Endowments are not getting their due and the properties have been and are being transferred to unconcerned individuals or organisations or have been acquired by the Government without making reciprocal arrangement for the beneficiaries, were put up by Manoyog before the Chief of the Dharmada, Audit and Accounts, Uttar - Pradesh, Allahabad. During the discussions it became clear that this Audit Organisation only checks the accounts and do not audit it in context of the objectives of the Trust and their beneficiaries.

So, with such informations, first hand experiences, and previous letters submitted to the State Government, the representatives of Manoyoga met the Secretary, Rashtriya Ekikaran, Dharmartha Karya Vibhag of Government of Uttar - Pradesh and discussed the details with the Under - Secretary  of the Department and put-up before him the conditions of so many Trusts and requested for help. But the Under - secretary claimed confidentiality and questioned the locus-standi of Manoyoga. At the insistence of the delegation, he drew a copy of the Act from his side rack and showed the provision. But when the right of the beneficiaries was explained to him, in that very Act, he questioned the bonafides of Manoyoga to take up the issue. It was also explained to him. Later on he conceded that the Government is conducting a survey and asking for the information from the districts which is still awaited and neither the Government has taken, nor is going to take any major step in near future for such problems.

Some people's representatives and the social workers were also contacted for ensuring proper utilisation of particular Trust property but due to their personal political compulsions and / or fear of muscle power, they avoided  interfering. Taking up the matter to the court of law is not simple. The documents are with the trustees and there are very few who can take up the issue, specially when the  locus-stand and bonafides are challenged, not to say of other practical problems.  

Even where such suits have been filed against the trustees or the persons having adverse possession, the usurpers are in a much favorable position. They are getting some income or services out of the properties, as compared to a person fighting for the common cause who has to spend not only time but money also from his own pocket. As such the cases linger long due to manipulations. The desperate S.M.B. workers under frustration leave the matter or are compelled do so by the muscle men. Even where some of the trustees are interested in getting justice done, they also feel frustrated with long drawn battle.