Chennai: Indian Origin MP Chandra Arya spoke in Kannada and echoed the sentiments of the people of Karnataka in the Canadian Parliament on Friday. He also recorded that this was the first time Kannada was spoken in a Parliament outside of India.
Talking at the Parliament, MP Chandra Arya said that he was happy to speak in his mother tongue Kannada at the Canadian Parliament. He also said it was a proud moment for five crore Kannadigas who live in Canada.
He ended his speech with a poem about Kannadiga pride written by poet Kuvempu. The poem goes by no matter wherever you are however you be you're always a Kannadiga, said a report on India Today.
This is the third time Chandra Arya was being elected to the Canadian Parliament. He was elected for the first time in 2015 and then in 2019.
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Later, taking to social media Canada MP Chandra Arya said, "I spoke in my mother tongue (first language) Kannada in the Canadian parliament."
"This beautiful language has a long history and is spoken by about 50 million people. This is the first time Kannada is spoken in any parliament in the world outside of India," he said.
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Meanwhile, Karnataka Minister for Higher Education Ashwathnaraya congratulated the newly-elected Kannadiga MP in Canada. He also expressed his joy over Kannada being echoed in the Parliament of a foreign nation.