As expected, film star and Andhra Pradesh Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan’s comments against the DMK government’s Hindi opposition in Tamil Nadu have created a storm in South politics. In response to Pawan Kalyan, the DMK party has said that the Tamil Nadu state assembly had passed a resolution against Hindi imposition and education in the mother tongue back in 1968.
And the Janasena chief took to X on Saturday evening and defended his comments against the DMK government’s hypocrisy. Replying in Tamil, Pawan wrote, “Mandatory imposition of a language and blind opposition to a language are not conducive to the unity of India.”
Explaining his “Hindi Go Back” statements in 2017, Pawan said, “I have never opposed Hindi as a language. But I have only opposed the previous attempt to make it compulsory.” Pawan went on to say that the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020) does not make Hindi compulsory in any way. “According to NEP 2020, students have the freedom to choose any two Indian languages (which do not have to be Hindi) and one foreign language in addition to their mother tongue. If they do not want to study Hindi, they can instead choose any Indian language.”
“To falsely claim that I have changed my position shows a lack of understanding of the language policy. The Janasena Party is certain that freedom of choice of language and freedom of education belong to every Indian,” he concluded.
ஒரு மொழியை கட்டாயமாக திணிப்பதும், ஒரு மொழியை கண்மூடித்தனமாக எதிர்ப்பதும்—இவை இரண்டுமே இந்தியாவின் தேசிய ஒருமைப்பாட்டிற்கு உகந்தவை அல்ல.
நான் ஹிந்தியை ஒரு மொழியாக ஒருபோதும் எதிர்க்கவில்லை. ஆனால், அதை கட்டாயமாக்குவதற்காக முன்பு எடுக்கப்பட்ட முயற்சிக்கு மட்டுமே எதிர்ப்பு…
— Pawan Kalyan (@PawanKalyan) March 15, 2025