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- Published: March 7, 2025 09:51
Chennai: Amid the ongoing war of words over allegations of imposing the National Education Policy (NEP) in Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister Stalin lashed out at Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and stated that he faced the consequences of reviving a fight he would never win.
CM Stalin said, “The tree may prefer calm, but the wind will not subside.” It was the Union Education Minister who provoked us to write this series of letters when we were simply doing our job. He forgot his place and dared to threaten an entire state to accept #HindiImposition, and now he faces the consequences of reviving a fight he can never win. Tamil Nadu will not be blackmailed into surrendering.”
“The biggest irony is that Tamil Nadu, which rejects NEP, has already achieved many of its goals, which the policy aims to reach only by 2030. This is like an LKG student lecturing a PhD holder. Dravidam does not take dictations from Delhi. Instead, it sets the course for the nation to follow,” he further said.
He further alleged that the row over the imposition of the three-language formula had become a laughing stock in Tamil Nadu.
“Now the BJP’s circus-like signature campaign for the three-language formula has become a laughing stock in Tamil Nadu. I challenge them to make this their core agenda in the 2026 Assembly elections and let it be a referendum on Hindi imposition. History is clear. Those who tried to impose Hindi on Tamil Nadu have either been defeated or later changed their stance and aligned with DMK. Tamil Nadu will not tolerate Hindi colonialism replacing British colonialism,” he added.
“From the names of schemes to awards to Union government institutions, Hindi has been imposed to a nauseating extent, suffocating non-Hindi speakers, who are the majority in India. Men may come, men may go. But even long after the dominance of Hindi is shattered in India, history will remember that it was DMK that stood as the vanguard,” he further added.
Meanwhile, in the ongoing debate on the alleged ‘imposition of languages’ in the Southern States, a PIL was filed in the Supreme Court seeking implementation of the three-language formula proposed by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and West Bengal.
The plea filed by BJP lawyer GS Mani said the refusal or failure of the State government to implement the National Educational Policy of the Central government or sign an MoU may harm the public interest or infringe on citizens’ rights.
While the Centre defended the policy as a step towards multilingualism, Tamil Nadu said that it unfairly pressures non-Hindi-speaking states.
The Tamil Nadu government has accused the Central government of trying to push Hindi “sideways” through the NEP, despite the state’s longstanding resistance to such policies.
The government has strongly opposed implementing the NEP, raising concern over the three-language formula and alleging that the Centre wants to “impose” Hindi.