Tamil Nadu Finance Minister’s budget proposals regarding the hike in subsidy for Christians undertaking pilgrimage to Jerusalem and the announcement of an award in the name of Quaide Milleth have drawn criticism from Hindu Munnani.
On August 5, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson presented the TVK government’s maiden Budget in the Tamil Nadu State Assembly. The Budget received bouquets from the public and political parties, but some proposals in the Budget, according to Hindu Munnani and other Hindu outfits, are not secular in nature but are tilted towards Christians and minorities.
The Tamil Nadu government announced a new State award in honour of the prominent leader Quaid-e-Millat (Muhammad Ismail), to be presented every year on Thiruvalluvar Day on January 15.
Hindu Munnani State President Kadeswara C. Subrmaniam, while stating that the Budget proposals as a whole can be welcomed, said certain announcements expose its intention to appease the minority community. Particularly, the announcement of an award after Quaide Milleth is like mocking sweet Pongal with spicy Vadakari (a side dish for dosa and idly), meaning both will not go together. The award being given on Thiruvalluvar Day amounts to humiliating the saint-poet Thiruvalluvar, which Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay should realise.
The principles of Quaide Milleth (“the Leader of the Nation”), born as M. Muhammad Ismail Rowther in Pettai, Tirunelveli, were based on religion and the partition of India, and he openly supported the division of the country along with Mohammed Ali Jinnah. He commented at that time that people in Pakistan got it by crying, but in India they remained with smiles. “We stay here only to convert India into another Pakistan or Muslim nation.”
It is to be noted that while Muhammad Ali Jinnah spearheaded the campaign for Pakistan, Quaid-e-Millat Muhammad Ismail stayed in independent India and formed the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a political party.
He served as the Madras Presidency Muslim League president during Partition and chose to stay in independent India rather than move to Pakistan, committing himself to the democratic integration and civil rights of Muslims remaining in the country.
The Hindu Munnani leader said, “His activities showed his love for the Tamil language. Announcing an award in the name of a political figure from the pre-1947 Muslim League, which shared collective responsibility for the two-nation theory and Partition, and making public honours or State-sponsored awards in their name, is unacceptable.
“The TVK government’s announcement reflects its intention to follow the DMK’s minority appeasement policies, which are dangerous to the State’s security and welfare. The present rulers do not understand the Tamil scholars who imbibed the teachings and spiritual guidance of saint-poet Thiruvalluvar in their lives. The award should be named after any such Tamil scholar rather than leaders who divided India and were pro-Pakistan. It should recall its announcement, ” further added.
Another announcement was the hike in the subsidy for visiting Jerusalem from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000. Hindu Munnani and netizens questioned the double standards of the TVK government, asking why it increases temple entry and other charges multiple times while using taxpayers’ money to fund pilgrimages.
Both Churches and Mosques do not give a single pie to the government, whereas the government earns crores from temples, with no infrastructural spending and poor maintenance of temples under the HR&CE Department. Why should the government give a subsidy to visit places of worship in foreign countries? What sort of announcement is this? Why should the government fund such journeys?
The Tamil Nadu Finance Minister came to the Assembly with the Budget papers and a rosary bead mala and, before starting to read the Budget papers, offered a Christian prayer.
Critics have already pointed out that, besides Joseph Vijay, Adhav Aruna, Minister Marie Wilson, advisers John Arockiasamy, and CoP Amal Raj are Christians. They allege that all key positions have been given to members of this religion.
Hindu Munnani opposes State-funded minority welfare schemes such as the Jerusalem pilgrimage subsidy and specific political awards, labelling them as “appeasement politics”.
It argues that using taxpayers’ money or State patronage for religious pilgrimages and specific community honours violates secular principles and discriminates against the majority Hindu community.
Hindu Munnani also condemned the Tamil Nadu Tawheed Jammat for appealing to the President not to give approval to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026. It said, “Vande Mataram is the Taraka Mantra, a sacred liberating chant of the freedom fighters. Is it bitter for pro-Pakistan outfits?”
Tamil Nadu Finance Secretary M.A. Siddique stated during a media briefing after the presentation of the Budget for the 2026–27 financial year that it will not be possible to reduce or wipe out the State’s accumulated debt even over the next 50 years, noting that the financial position cannot be corrected in a single year.
He clarified that borrowing is acceptable if it is used for development, noting that the State plans to take loans totalling ₹1,73,445 crore for FY2027 while keeping welfare measures intact.
