As rightly pointed out by TN BJP chief Annamalai, in another stage-managed diversionary move, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin warned PM Modi not to force another language battle on us.
He was reacting to the report submitted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, heading the Parliamentary Committee on Official Language, to President Draupadi Murmu, recently, Stalin said if implemented, the vast non-Hindi speaking population will be made second-class citizens in their own land. On 10th, he launched a tirade against the Centre over the language issue and warned the BJP-led government not to force another language war by imposing Hindi.
CM Stalin said, “Imposing Hindi is against the integrity of India. The BJP government would do well to learn lessons from the anti-Hindi agitations in the past,” he said, apparently referring to the agitations in Tamil Nadu that fuelled Tamil pride. The BJP government would do well to learn lessons from the past…don’t try to make Hindi compulsory and force on us another language war. In a statement, TN CM said “mandating a common language, which was practically impossible, was like stating that only Hindi speakers are the rightful citizens of India and speakers of other languages are second class citizens. This is divisive in nature. Not only Tamil Nadu, but anyone, including the neighbours, who respected their mother tongue, would not accept it”.
Stating that India is land of unity in diversity in which all languages including Tamil should be treated equally and all should be given the official language status of the Central government. “Do not take a total opposition stand and attempt to make Hindi mandatory. Do not try to test the fire of our mother language affinity, “he threatened. CM Stalin accused the BJP led government of attempting to destroy the brotherhood of people of various religions, languages and cultures to establish one language, one religion, one food and one culture in the name of one nation which is harmful to the unity of the country”. He questioned while all 22 languages in the 8th schedule of the Constitution of India were equal, while so, where the urgent is or necessity for the panel led by Home Minister Amit Shah to make only Hindi as the medium of instruction.
He warned, “Don’t forget the history of brave youths, who took bullets and sacrificed their lives by self-immolation to protect the mother tongue.” (he was referring to Hindi agitation in 1965 when Congress was at the helm which tried to impose Hindi).
He also tweeted “The rigorous thrust by Union BJP government for #Hindi Imposition, negating the diversity of India, is happening at an alarming pace. The proposals made in the 11th volume of the report of the Parliamentary Committee on Official Language are a direct onslaught on India’s soul”.
Reacting to CM Stalin, BJP Chief Animalia, who is currently abroad, issued a three-page statement condemning Stalin over his statement alleging of Hindi by Central government. He said, “DMK takes up the language issue whenever there was dissatisfaction among the public with the regime. The people will take care of protecting the Tamil language and Tamil Nadu. The CM should concentrate on governing the state. The CM Stalin’s sudden love for Tamil is making us to laugh or cry. He has been trying to project and make believe that some evil forces from North will destroy Tamil. This was possible when there was no social media. Now we are in digital era. Tamil has withstood so many doomsdays, calamities, oppressions, and deluges and emerged every time on its own. What Dravidian government made people who can’t read, write and speak properly and write error free? Now we are witnessing this. Its Tamil words reformation left many could not read the great literatures for generation together, which its contribution to Tamil is ”.
Journalist C Praveen said, “DMK first family members are well versed in Hindi, and it is their medium of language at Delhi to further their selfish interest. DMK member’s CBSC institutions are teaching Hindi. Stalin daughter’s Sun shine school, speaking in Tamil, will invite fine. These Hippocrates are now pretending saviour of Tamil. Whereas PM Modi speaks, annotates, quotes from Tamil literatures. The New Education Policy makes mother as compulsory till 8th.
It should be remembered, DMK’s mentor EV Ramaswamy Naicker ( Periyar) described “ Tamil as a ‘barbarian language “ (kaatumiraandi mozhi). He wanted Tamil to be discarded at home and advocated the use of English as the medium of communication. He went to the extent of saying that ‘Tamil is a language that is not even useful for begging’. He criticized our epics and Silapathikaram and in 1949 and 50 he called Thirukkural as human Excreta” . Stalin, who tom-toms that he is following footsteps of Periyar, now turns saviour and champion of Tamil language cause like a butcher preaching ahimsa”.
