Chennai: Escalating his critique of the Central government over the alleged imposition of Hindi through a three-language policy, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has asserted that advocating for linguistic equality is not chauvinism. In a detailed post on X this morning, Mr. Stalin referenced a widely attributed quote by entertainment mogul Franklin Leonard: "When you are accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression."
The DMK leader remarked that he was reminded of this quote "when some entitled bigots brand us chauvinists and anti-nationals for the ‘crime’ of demanding Tamil’s rightful place in Tamil Nadu." Targeting the BJP and its ideological parent, the RSS, he pointed out that those who "glorify Godse’s ideology have the audacity to question the patriotism of DMK and its government, which contributed the highest amount of funds during the Chinese Aggression, Bangladesh Liberation War, and Kargil War, while their ideological forefather is the one who assassinated ‘Bapu’ Gandhi."
In a tweet, Mr Stalin said:
👉🏾 "When you are accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression." I am reminded of this famous quote when some entitled bigots brand us chauvinists and anti-nationals for the ‘crime’ of demanding Tamil’s rightful place in Tamil Nadu.
👉🏾 The very people who glorify… [link to tweet]
The Chief Minister further stated, "Demanding Linguistic Equality is not chauvinism. Do you want to know what Chauvinism looks like? Chauvinism is naming the three criminal laws that govern 140 crore citizens in a language that Tamils cannot even pronounce or comprehend by reading. Chauvinism is treating the state that contributes the most to the nation as second-class citizens and denying its fair share for refusing to swallow the poison called NEP."
He emphasized that any form of imposition breeds enmity, adding, "Enmity threatens unity. Hence, the true chauvinists and anti-nationals are the Hindi zealots who believe their entitlement is natural but our resistance is treason."
The National Education Policy advocates for a three-language policy but stresses that "no language will be imposed on any State." The DMK government in Tamil Nadu has strongly opposed the three-language policy, alleging Hindi imposition.
The BJP in Tamil Nadu argues that a three-language policy is essential, particularly to assist people when traveling to other parts of the country, presenting it as a capacity-building mechanism. The DMK, however, contends that while children can learn multiple languages, it should not be imposed. They also highlight that historically, Tamils have achieved great heights under an education system based on a two-language formula.
State BJP chief K. Annamalai countered Chief Minister Stalin, labeling him a "hypocrite" for criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Centre’s fund allocation for Sanskrit-Hindi and Tamil. Mr. Annamalai questioned, "Only a Hypocrite would ask about the increased allocation of funds to Sanskrit over Tamil, knowing the rationality behind it very well. We are calling you a ‘HYPOCRITE’ because this is the allocation for the development of Sanskrit & Tamil between 2006-14. Sanskrit: Rs 675.36 Crores. Tamil: Rs 75.05 Crores. What were you doing back then? What were you doing while former Home Minister Thiru P Chidambaram submitted over 170 recommendations to popularise Hindi nationwide?"
Today, the state BJP chief launched a signature campaign to support the three-language policy.
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