Stalin’s Sharp Rebuttal to Yogi on “Hate Hindi,” It is “Political Black Comedy at its Darkest”
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Mar 27: In a sharp reply to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s criticism over the three-language row calling Tamil Nadu’s opposition to the New Education Policy a “narrow politics,” MK Stalin on Thursday hit back saying his UP counterpart was indulging in “political black comedy at its darkest” and indirectly accused the BJP of instigating communal riots for vote bank politics.
Giving the “language war” a new twist, Mr Stalin said Tamil Nadu’s opposition against the “imposition” of Hindi was not “riot-for-votes politics but a battle for dignity and justice.” He refuted Yogi Adityanath’s allegation that the Tamil Nadu ruling party DMK was spreading “hatred” for Hindi and said his government did not oppose the language, but only “oppose imposition and chauvinism.”
“Tamil Nadu’s fair and firm voice on #TwoLanguagePolicy and #FairDelimitation is echoing nationwide—and the BJP is clearly rattled. Just watch their leaders’ interviews,” Mr Stalin said in a post on social media. “And now Hon’ble Yogi Adityanath wants to lecture us on hate? Spare us. This isn’t irony—it’s political black comedy at its darkest. We don’t oppose any language; we oppose imposition and chauvinism. This isn’t riot-for-votes politics. This is a battle for dignity and justice,” M. Stalin wrote on his social platforms sharing a link to a news report on Mr Adityanath’s remarks.
Yogi Adityanath in an interview earlier had accused Mr Stalin of trying to create divisions based on region and language for vote bank. He also wondered why Hindi was being hated. “The country should not be divided on the basis of language or region. We are grateful to Prime Minister Modi ji for organizing the third generation of the Kashi-Tamil Sangamam in Varanasi. Tamil is one of the oldest languages in India, and its history is as ancient as Sanskrit. Every Indian has respect and reverence for Tamil because many elements of Indian heritage are still alive in the language. So, why should we hate Hindi?”
“I believe this is the message conveyed by our National Anthem as well. This is merely narrow politics. When these people feel their vote bank is at risk, they try to create divisions based on region and language. The people of this country should always be alert to such divisive politics and stand firm for the unity of the country,” Mr Adityanath said.
In a sharp response, Mr Stalin said Tamil Nadu’s stand on the two-language and delimitation was “echoing nationwide” and the BJP was “clearly rattled.” “And now Hon’ble Yogi Adityanath wants to lecture us on hate? Spare us. This isn’t irony – it’s political black comedy at its darkest.”
Reacting to Mr Stalin’s criticism, Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai said the whole country was now aware that the Chief Minister’s family owns private schools that teach three languages, but it opposes the adoption of same policy in the government schools.
“TN CM thinks that the orchestrated drama by his partymen in pockets here and there reflects the voice of entire TN. It is also unfortunate that you haven’t realised that your attempts to divert people’s attention to insignificant matters have been exposed. Live in your blissful world of ignorance, Thiru @mkstalin. We will not disturb you,” he said in a post on X.
The Tamil Nadu government last week had reiterated the state’s two-language policy in the Assembly. Mr Stalin had told the House that the government was scrutinising the report submitted by Justice D. Murugesan Committee that was constituted to draft a distinct State Education Policy. “As for language policy, this government is firm and strong in its position on two-language policy,” Minister Thangam Thennarasu had said while responding to concerns raised by PMK’s G.K. Mani in the House.
Mr Thennarasu had said following in the footsteps of former Chief Ministers C.N. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi, incumbent Chief Minister M.K. Stalin too was for the two-language policy. As for Mr Mani’s concerns about students completing their schooling without learning Tamil, Mr Thennarasu recalled Karunanidhi had in 2006 brought about a legislation making Tamil learning compulsory.
Though the PMK was a BJP ally in Tamil Nadu, Mr Mani had welcomed the government’s position on the two-language policy and maintained the PMK was “firm in its position against the three-language policy.” While the teaching of Tamil should be made compulsory for students, English was the link language with other States, he had said.
