4 hours ago
Last Updated:February 23, 2025, 22:16 IST
Union Minister Jayant Singh dismissed claims of Hindi imposition as a narrow political viewpoint. The DMK in Tamil Nadu alleges Hindi imposition through NEP 2020, a charge denied by the Centre.
Union Minister of State and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Jayant Chaudhary said those claiming that Hindi is being imposed are doing so because they have a “narrow political viewpoint”. (IMAGE: PTI)
The Union Minister of State for Education Jayant Singh on Sunday said that those complaining of Hindi being imposed are trying to impose “their rigid, narrow political viewpoint". In a social media post, Singh said “language cannot be imposed on anyone else".
His comments come amid the language row in Tamil Nadu where the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has been alleging Hindi imposition by the Centre.
The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu has been engaged in a war of words with the BJP and the party-led Central government, alleging Hindi imposition through the Education Policy (NEP 2020), a charge denied by the Centre.
“Language is a part of our sense of identity & also links us to community & as productive members of society. Language cannot be imposed on anyone else, but is a medium to converse, exchange views & build a common understanding as well as create an appreciation for diversity & plurality," Singh, an MP from Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) – a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally at the Democratic Alliance (NDA)-led central government – said.
“For those who have not even read #NEP2020 but, are alleging imposition of language (only for imposing their rigid, narrow political viewpoint)," he further added and then shared the directive on local languages as listed in the NEP.
“There will be a greater emphasis on the use of the mother
tongue/local language as a medium of instruction and as a
language of interaction in the classroom. (NEP 2020, Section 22.8)," the minister highlighted.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also cautioned against attempts to discriminate on the basis of language, asserting that there has never been any animosity among Indian languages and each has enriched the other.
Stalin, also DMK president, said he will not permit any activities inimical to Tamil language, the state and its people, on the soil, so long as he and his DMK existed.
Alleged Hindi imposition has been a sensitive subject in Tamil Nadu, and the DMK successfully led a massive anti-Hindi agitation in 1965 during which a number of pro-Tamil activists killed themselves, mostly by self-immolation, against imposition of the language.
Main opposition AIADMK also hit out at the Centre over NEP.
(with inputs from PTI)
Location : First Published:February 23, 2025, 22:16 IST
News politics ‘For Those Who Haven’t Even Read NEP…’: Union Minister Jayant Singh On Language Row
