'Must know Hindi to buy tea...': MK Stalin's latest jibe on BJP's third-language formula under NEP

Amid the ongoing clashes with the central government over its three-language formula under the New Education Policy (NEP), 2020, the chief minister of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu has criticised the "advocacy" for "Hindi" by BJP leaders. In a post on the social media platform X on Friday (Feb 28), Stalin wrote, "BJP leaders advocating Hindi insist, 'You must know Hindi to buy tea, pani puri, or use toilets in North India'."

He called "forcing" Hindi as a third language in the time of Artificial Intelligence (AI) an "unnecessary" move.

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"In the Age of AI, forcing any language as a third language in schools is unnecessary. Advanced translation technology already removes language barriers instantly. Students should not be burdened with extra languages," Stalin said.

"They should focus on mastering their mother tongue and English while gaining expertise in science and technology. If needed, they can learn any language later," he added.

He further said, "True progress lies in innovation, not linguistic imposition."

Regional languages 'swallowed' by Hindi: Stalin

This came after his previous post on February 18 when he claimed that many regional languages of north India were "swallowed" by Hindi.

"My dear sisters and brothers from other states, ever wondered how many Indian languages Hindi has swallowed? Bhojpuri, Maithili, Awadhi, Braj, Bundeli, Garhwali, Kumaoni, Magahi, Marwari, Malvi, Chhattisgarhi, Santhali, Angika, Ho, Kharia, Khortha, Kurmali, Kurukh, Mundari and many more are now gasping for survival," Stalin said.

"The push for a monolithic Hindi identity is what kills ancient mother tongues. UP and Bihar were never just "Hindi heartlands." Their real languages are now relics of the past," he said adding that Tamil Nadu "resists" because it knows "where this ends".

'Poor governance...'

After his statement of February 27, Indian Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishwanath slammed him and said he is attempting to "divide society".

"Poor governance will never be hidden by such shallow attempts to divide society," Vaishnaw said.

"It will be interesting to know what the leader of the opposition, Rahul Gandhi Ji, has to say on this subject. Does he, as MP of a Hindi-speaking seat, agree?" he added.

(With inputs from agencies)