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Article 349

Part XVII — Official Language · Constitution of India

Article 349

Special procedure for enactment of certain laws relating to language. During the period of fifteen years from the commencement of this Constitution, no Bill or amendment making provision for the language to be used for any of the purposes mentioned in clause (1) of article 348 shall be introduced or moved in either House of Parliament without the previous sanction of the President, and the President shall not give his sanction to the introduction of any such Bill or the moving of any such amendment except after he has taken into consideration the recommendations of the Commission constituted under clause (1) of article 344 and the report of the Committee constituted under clause (4) of that article.

In plain wordsFor the first fifteen years, no bill changing the language rules for courts and legislation could even be introduced in Parliament without the President's prior approval, and the President had to consider the language commission's recommendations first.
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