Monolithic Hindi 'swallowed' many Indian languages, says Stalin amid language war; Ashwini Vaishnaw hits back

The ruling DMK has been alleging Hindi imposition by the Centre through the 3-language formula as part of the National Education Policy (NEP), a charged denied by the union government.

Chennai: Tamil Nadu continues to resist “imposition of Hindi” because it is aware that the push for a monolithic Hindi identity has “swallowed” at least 20 ancient mother tongues across the country making them gasp for their survival, Chief Minister M K Stalin said on Thursday.

Stalin alleged that Hindi was the mask, and Sanskrit was the hidden face behind the Union Government’s insistence that Tamil Nadu implement the three-language formula as part of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The Chief Minister said though the Union government says the third language could even be a foreign language, the reality is that only Hindi and Sanskrit are being promoted in many states, including in Rajasthan, where the state government was keen on appointing Sanskrit teachers instead of Urdu instructors.

“Ever wondered how many Indian languages Hindi has swallowed? Bhojpuri, Maithili, Awadhi, Braj, Bundeli, Garhwali, Kumaoni, Magahi, Marwari, Malvi, Chhattisgarhi, Santhali, Angika, Ho, Kharia, Khortha, Kurmali, Kurukh, Mundari and many more are now gasping for survival,” Stalin said.

The push for a monolithic Hindi identity is what kills ancient mother tongues, the Chief Minister said, adding that UP and Bihar were never just Hindi heartlands.

“Their real languages are now relics of the past. Tamil Nadu resists because we know where this ends,” Stalin added.

In response to Stalin’s X post, the Union minister for I&B Ashwani Vaishnaw said poor governance will never be hidden by such shallow attempts to divide society.

“It will be interesting to know what the Leader of the Opposition, @RahulGandhi Ji, has to say on this subject. Does he, as MP of a Hindi-speaking seat, agree?” he asked.

The statement by Stalin assumes significance as it comes in the wake of a running battle between the DMK dispensation and the Union government on the latter’s insistence on the former implementing the National Education Policy 2020 and the three-language formula.

Tamil Nadu, which formally adopted a two-language policy in 1968, has been opposed to the three-language formula as it maintains that learning Hindi was redundant as English is enough to communicate with the outside world.

Stalin had on Tuesday said the BJP-led Union government’s intent behind pushing the three-language policy was to “ruin” Tamil language and Tamil Nadu’s rich culture.

Dwelling into the history of how Tamil Nadu opposed imposition of Hindi tooth and nail since the 1930s, Stalin said it was the then Justice Party chief A S Panneerselvam, Tamil poet Maraimalai Adigal, and Dravidian legend E V R Periyar who spearheaded the efforts to defeat the C Rajaji government’s decision to make Hindi compulsory in schools.