Mother refuses to punish daughter for speaking Hindi at home, upsets stepson

A mother from India is facing a difficult situation after her stepson became upset about not understanding Hindi, their native language. The mother's daughter, Anya, who is 11 years old, has a habit of speaking in Hindi when excited, and this has not been a problem until recently. The stepson, Ben, who had just lost his mother and was living with the family full-time, walked in on Anya and her mother speaking Hindi and started crying. Since then, Anya has been making an effort to speak only in English to make Ben feel more comfortable. However, when she became frustrated and started speaking in Hindi again, the mother's husband suggested that they start punishing her until Ben feels better. The mother is against this suggestion and believes it is unfair to punish Anya for speaking her first language, especially when she is making an effort to make Ben feel more comfortable. The husband, on the other hand, believes that they should do everything they can to prevent Ben from feeling excluded during his time of mourning. The conflict between them has left them both feeling conflicted and unsure of who is in the wrong. Read on for the comments and reactions to this difficult familial situation.