‘Tamil is not a monopoly’: Pradhan says

Last update:March 11, 2025, 22:03

Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday clarified that the central government is not implementing any language on anyone, nor is it removing anyone’s rights.

Amid the ongoing controversy between the Tamil Nadu government and the Center allegedly “imposing Hindi”, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday made it clear that the central government is not implementing any language on anyone, nor is it removing anyone’s rights.

Responding to questions on the functioning of the Ministry of Education in the Rajya Sabha, Pradhan insisted that India is a multilingual country and assured that the Modi government would not hurt anyone’s feelings on the basis of language. “

The Education Minister said that “Tamil language is not a monopoly of anyone” and he expressed that there was no need for Tamil to question the central government’s commitment. She mentioned an incident in the Tamil Nadu Assembly in 1989, when the late Jayalalithaa, then the Leader of the Opposition, was physically attacked by DMK members.

“What they did to Jayalalithaa on the floor of the house, we do not need anyone’s certificate whether we are committed to Tamil language or not. We are completely committed to the Tamil language, ”said Pradhan.

PM Shri School Scheme

In his address, Pradhan also mentioned a letter from the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu, which confirmed the state’s wish to adopt the PM Shri School Scheme.

Senior BJP leaders were standing with their claim that the Tamil Nadu government had initially agreed to sign the memorandum (MoU) for the plan, but later took a U-turn.

On 15 March 2024, a consent letter was also shared with the Tamil Nadu School Education Department to support his claims on Pradhan Media X.

Meanwhile, government sources told AyraNews24x7 Since PM-SHRI schools are made mandatory to follow NEPs, Tamil Nadu’s initial agreement plan was inevitably agreed to NEP.

The Union Minister also shared that the number of Tamil-medium students in government schools had decreased in the last six years, while the teaching of “colonial language” was increasing.

The Education Minister further stated that NEP prioritizes mother tongues, and in Tamil Nadu, NEP nominated Tamil as primary language. However, he pointed to the contradiction, with a decline in Tamil-language education, while teaching of other languages, especially Hindi, increased schools.

“You can call me a fool, but you cannot fool the people of Tamil Nadu. You can abuse me, but do not deny the opportunities of the youth of Tamil Nadu, “he said.

‘Spreading wrong information will not change the facts’

In response to Dharmendra Pradhan’s comments, Tamil Nadu Education Minister Ambil Mahesh said that spreading wrong information will not change the facts. He again confirmed that Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, claiming that it “reduces our successful education model”.

Mahesh took X to clarify, saying, “No ‘no’ sudden change in stance”. He further stated that on 15 March 2024, there was no support of the Dated letter NEP.

He said, “TN is engaged with central schemes only when it is beneficial for students, but this does not mean that the blind acceptance of any plan or outline,” he said.

The DMK minister also accused those who supported NEP to do politics and implement NEP to distort the “Culture and Heritage of Tamil Nadu”.

Also read: DMK Nap, protests in Parliament on three language policy; Dharmendra apologizes to Pradhan