With the escalation of the row over dropping German as a third language in Kendriya Vidyalayas, the German government went into overdrive to engage with Sanskrit Shikshak Sangh, that has the solid backing of top RSS ideologue Dinanath Batra, to seek its cooperation for promoting the two languages. At a meeting Wednesday at which German ambassador Michael Steiner was present, the delegation did not seek reconsideration of the Sanskrit Sangh’s opposition to German being taught as a third language in KV schools. Sources said the hour-long meeting was also attended by Mr Batra, whose hand is seen behind recent moves on education reforms by the Narendra Modi government. The row over German is seen as part of this overall strategy.
The German ambassador’s meeting with Mr Batra comes soon after Mr Modi assured German Chancellor Angela Merkel he would look into her concerns.
At Wednesday’s meeting, at the outfit’s Naraina office, Mr Steiner is learnt to have told a group of Sanskrit scholars the two languages, German and Sanskrit, could co-exist. The Germans sought more cultural exchanges with Sanskrit scholars, to which Sangh members agreed.