Tamil Nadu Opposition slams govt. for using Hindi in press release

Chennai: AIADMK party leader O Panneerselvam alleged on Sunday that the ruling DMK slammed the Centre for the imposition of Hindi once, and then it used the language to publicise the party's president and Chief Minister M K Stalin in northern states, projecting him as a national leader, PTI reported.

Panneerselvam said that when Union Home Minister Amit Shah said Hindi should replace English as medium of communication between states, Stalin had opposed citing it might destroy the nation's integrity. Now, Stalin has published two official press notes in the same language, which shows the DMK regime's double standard. He claimed that the Tamil Nadu government and CM are changing tactics to protect interests.

He said that people have started asking why Hindi was chosen, which reflected the 3-language formula, against English, under the 2-language policy that was enunciated by Dravidian icon C N Annadurai. Rather than bringing up Tamil, Stalin himself is promoting Hindi, he alleged.

However, for DMK, the Minister for Tamil Official Language and Culture, Thangam Thennarasu, retorted that Hindi was added for the smooth dissemination of information. Thennarasu explained that the announcements had key archaeological findings on the ancient Tamil language and initiatives aimed at social justice (Equality Day) for people across the country. He mocked Panneerselvam for attempting to publicise himself as his party's organisational polls were around.

Two press notes were issued by the TN government, one related to archaeology and the other on the celebration of Dr B R Ambedkar's birth anniversary as Equality Day. Stalin's announcements were released in Hindi as well this time, but Tamil and sometimes Hindi took precedence.