With Tamil Nadu assembly elections around the corner, the Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE) announcement that it will implement the trilingual pattern in a phased manner from 2026-27 has set off a war of words between the DMK government in the state and the BJP-led regime at the Center over “imposition of Hindi” versus “progressive and inclusive multilingualism”.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin condemned the move by the CBSE, which is guided by the National Education Policy 2020, arguing that it was a “covert” way of “imposing” Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states without “reciprocity”. He demanded that his opponents in the state – the AIADMK and their allies the NDA – choose whether to support the policy or “for once stand up for the rights, identity and future of our students”.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan responded that the “story” was a “tired attempt to mask policy failures”. He added that the policy’s “mischaracterization” of portraying multilingualism as a threat was “inappropriate”.
‘rank hypocrisy’
The three-language policy is a “calculated and deeply disturbing attempt at linguistic imposition that confirms our long-standing fears,” Mr. Stalin said, adding that it is being pushed “under the guise of promoting ‘Indian languages’.” The CM called out the “sharp and unacceptable irony” and said: “The same Union government that failed to make Tamil a compulsory language in Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan schools — and has consistently failed to appoint adequate Tamil teachers – is now trying to lecture the states about promoting Indian languages. This is not a commitment, this is rank hypocrisy.”
Mr. Stalin added, “The Union government seems determined to introduce Hindi, brushing aside the legitimate, consistent and democratic concerns raised by Tamil Nadu and several other states.” He called the approach a “direct affront” to the principles of cooperative federalism and an “insult” to the linguistic identity of millions of Indians.
“Creating barriers for youth”
In response, Mr Pradhan said: “By misrepresenting the flexible policy as ‘mandatory Hindi’, you are not defending Tamil; you are creating barriers that deny our youth the opportunity to become multilingual global leaders…Tamil is not weakened by learning other languages; it is enriched when its speakers are multilingual, confident and linguistically strong.”
The education minister dismissed fears of reciprocity, saying the argument “ignored ground realities”, noting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership had ensured that Tamil was “celebrated as a national treasure”, citing the government’s Kashi Tamil Sangamam and other efforts on the global stage. He claimed that the union government was “actively encouraging students across India to adopt Indian languages”, even as the Tamil Nadu government “continues to deprive Tamil students of various opportunities in the interest of a divisive vote bank”.
Arguments continued on X, with DMK leaders including Kanimozhi and P. Wilson supporting Mr. Stalin’s arguments on the social media platform, while TN BJP leader K. Annamalai supported Mr. Pradhan’s argument by asking how the policy was forcing Hindi on students. However, none of the BJP’s allied parties in Tamil Nadu could jump into the fray on social media.
Ground realities
In a statement criticizing the trilingual framework for “effectively shifting to compulsory Hindi”, Mr Stalin asked whether students in Hindi-speaking states would be mandated to learn Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam or even Bengali or Marathi? He called the policy “ill-conceived” and asked if the union government was aware of the ground reality of “availability of teachers, training capacity and infrastructure”.
He added: “This is not just a question of language – it is a question of justice, federalism and equal opportunity. By structurally favoring Hindi-speaking students, this policy risks creating entrenched advantages in higher education and employment, further exacerbating regional disparities… India’s strength lies in diversity – not enforced uniformity.”
Mr. Pradhan replied, “The talk of resources is just a facade. It is the DMK government that has stalled the establishment of PM SHRI schools in Tamil Nadu by refusing to sign the MoU after committing to it.” He also accused the DMK government of “hindering” the implementation of Navodaya Vidyalayas in the state, saying it “prioritises political narratives over quality of education”. The education minister claimed that it was because of the DMK’s “dishonest politics” that “modern infrastructure and teachers were effectively held back”, and reiterated his government’s “commitment” to funding and training teachers.
“Protection of Constitutional Rights”
In response, Mr Stalin said Mr Pradhan’s remarks were “deeply irresponsible and reckless and reflect an ingrained contempt for India’s pluralism, federal values and respect for states”. In his post on X, Mr. Stalin reiterated Tamil Nadu’s firm rejection of the three-language policy, which he said was not just about opposing languages, but about resisting imposition and defending constitutional rights.
“Your earlier disparaging remarks about Tamils in Parliament, followed by a belated apology, only underscores a pattern of behavior that is unacceptable. The claim that there is ‘no Hindi mandate’ is patently dishonest. When politics structurally pushes non-Hindi speaking states like Tamil Nadu to adopt a third language with little real choice of funding, it is a crucial question of choice and funding,” Mr Stalin said.
“It is nothing short of audacity to illegally withhold a whopping sum of ₹2,200 crore under the ‘Samagra Shiksha’ scheme, effectively penalizing Tamil Nadu for refusing to accept the Hindi Ordinance. These are not discretionary grants, but funds that rightfully belong to the people of Tamil Nadu, collected as a tax instrument.
“What is real linguistic diversity?”
Tamil Nadu will not under any circumstances accept the imposition of languages, whether disguised as flexibility, supported by financial pressure or projected as national interest, he declared. The policy places an unnecessary burden on students, violates states’ rights and attempts to dilute India’s linguistic diversity into a monochromatic, homogenized framework of “One India”, he said.
“In the din of rhetoric you must not avoid basic questions. What third Indian language is actually being implemented in schools across Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat? How many PM SHRI schools actually offer South Indian languages like Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu? How many languages under the school Bengali, Kendra in India, Odyal, Sangathan really teach Tamil How many of Tamil and other South Indian language teachers were appointed in the last 10 years?, Mr. Stalin asked, challenging the Union minister to put on record how much the NDA government had spent on promoting classical languages like Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Udi compared to Sanskrit.
“Your suggestion that Tamil Nadu lacks school infrastructure is equally unfounded. We have built one of India’s strongest public education systems through decades of sustained investment, high enrollment, strong academic performance and pioneering welfare initiatives,” he said.
Bilingual success stories
Tamil Nadu will not abandon its proven bilingual policy, built on social consensus and strong educational outcomes, for a centrally-run framework that undermines diversity, burdens students and weakens India’s federal structure, the chief minister said. Tamil Nadu’s language policy is a success story on the global stage, with Tamils making a name for themselves in science and technology, medicine and space exploration. Economic growth and inclusiveness of the state are deeply rooted in this model, he said, adding that the state’s claims can be substantiated with empirical data, while the Centre’s arguments are purely rhetorical and lack real education data.
“It is both inaccurate and dismissive to say that Tamil Nadu schools are lagging behind in modern education. In terms of enrolment, learning outcomes and innovation, Tamil Nadu continues to lead. In the last five years, the Government of Tamil Nadu has made significant progress in infrastructure and introduced pioneering initiatives such as the Chief Minister’s free breakfast scheme benefiting over 20,200 crore CM 2006 election promises to students DMK06 to extend DMK’s 200 million students Breakfast program up to class VIII benefiting 15 million more students remains our top priority Public education is seen not as an expenditure but as a social investment creating long-term societal benefits,” Mr. Stalin said.
The Chief Minister urged Mr. Pradhan to declare on Tamil Nadu soil that every Indian child should learn three languages compulsorily, even while seeking votes in the state.
