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Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin has asserted that the state would firmly oppose and not accept the "Hindi imposition" by the central government.
He was addressing a public meeting organised by the Chennai North-East District DMK in Tiruvottiyur on Sunday to observe Veera Vanakkam Day in honour of people who died during the language agitation in the state in the late 1930s. Udhayanidhi Stalin paid floral tributes to the portraits of the 'language agitation martyrs' placed. Addressing the gathering, he said people of Tamil Nadu hold a unique place in world history for having laid down their lives to protect their mother tongue. He noted that the movement initiated during the eras of Periyar EV Ramasamy and former Chief Minister CN Annadurai continues with the same intensity even today. He pointed out that several mother tongues once spoken in states such as Haryana, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh gradually declined after the introduction of Hindi. "Hindi has become a language that swallows many mother tongues," he said, adding that this is why Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed the alleged Hindi imposition. The Deputy Chief Minister further stated that many other states are now beginning to follow Tamil Nadu's stand on language rights. Reiterating the State government's position, he said Tamil Nadu would strongly oppose Hindi imposition, the New Education Policy, and any other form of coercion by the Union Government. Chief Minister MK Stalin also remembered Natarajan and Thalamuthu, two revered figures, who died during the language movement in the state. "Salute to the language war martyrs! In the memorial at the base where Natarajan and Thalamuthu, who laid down their lives in the initial phase of the 1938 language war, are laid to rest, I paid my respects. I also paid homage to the language war heroine, Mother Dharumambaal. I unveiled the statues at the Thalamuthu-Natarasan Memorial in Ezhumbur. On this day, I also remember with Tamil pride the other martyrs who made the supreme sacrifice in the language wars," the Chief Minister wrote on X. There has been an ongoing tussle between the state government and the Centre, where the DMK government accuses the BJP of imposing Hindi. Amid this, the state also introduced the State Education Policy, with a two-language formula. This comes amid the heated politics as the state is set to hold the Legislative Assembly elections later this year, where the DMK-led alliance will look to defend its hold on the state against the AIADMK-BJP-led alliance. (ANI)
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