‘Never opposed Hindi, only against making it compulsory’: Pawan Kalyan defends stance amid NEP row

NEW DELHI: Amid the ongoing debate between the Union government and Tamil Nadu over language policy, Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister and Janasena Party chief Pawan Kalyan said on Saturday that claims of Hindi being imposed are misleading.
"Either imposing a language forcibly or opposing a language blindly; both doesn’t help to achieve the objective of National & Cultural integration of our Bharat. I had never opposed Hindi as a language. I only opposed making it compulsory. When the NEP 2020 itself does not enforce Hindi, spreading false narratives about its imposition is nothing but an attempt to mislead the public," Kalyan said.
He pointed out that under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, students can choose to study any two Indian languages along with a foreign language. "If they do not wish to study Hindi, they can and also opt for Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Sanskrit, Gujarati, Assamese, Kashmiri, Odia, Bengali, Punjabi, Sindhi, Bodo, Dogri, Konkani, Maithili, Meitei, Nepali, Santali, Urdu, or any other Indian language," he said.

Kalyan’s statement comes in response to

Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin

, who has accused the Union government of imposing Hindi and has refused to implement the

three-language formula

under NEP.
Earlier, on Friday also Kalyan had criticized Tamil Nadu leaders, questioning why they allow Tamil films to be dubbed in Hindi for financial gain while opposing the language. Speaking at his party’s foundation day event in Kakinada district, he said, "In Tamil Nadu, people oppose the imposition of Hindi. This makes me wonder if they don't want Hindi, then why do they dub Tamil films in Hindi for financial gains? They want money from Bollywood but refuse to accept Hindi. What kind of logic is that?"
He also highlighted the importance of multiple languages for national unity. "India needs multiple languages, including Tamil, not just two. We must embrace linguistic diversity—not only to maintain the integrity of our nation but also to foster love and unity among its people," he added.
DMK's response
DMK leader TKS Elangovan responded to Kalyan's statement by saying that Tamil Nadu has always followed a two-language policy, with Tamil and English being taught in schools. "We have been opposing Hindi since 1938. We passed legislation in the state assembly that Tamil Nadu will always follow the two-language formula because of the advice and suggestions of the experts in education, not actors. The bill was passed way back in 1968 when Pawan Kalyan was not even born. He doesn't know the politics of Tamil Nadu," Elangovan said.

Actor Prakash Raj also commented, saying, "Saying 'don't impose your Hindi on us' is not the same as hating another language. It is about protecting our mother tongue and our cultural identity with pride."
Tamil Nadu chief minister Stalin, speaking at a rally in Thiruvallur on March 12, criticized the NEP, saying it was not aimed at education but at promoting Hindi. "National Education Policy is not education policy; it is saffron policy. The policy is not created to develop India but to develop Hindi. We are opposing the policy as it would destroy the Tamil Nadu education system completely," Stalin had said.

What's the issue?

The debate over the National Education Policy (NEP) centers around its three-language formula, which Tamil Nadu fears could lead to the imposition of Hindi in the state. Chief Minister MK Stalin has argued that the policy prioritizes Hindi over regional languages, affecting the state’s linguistic diversity and autonomy.
The central government, however, maintains that the NEP promotes multilingualism and offers flexibility in language education. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has denied claims of Hindi imposition, stating that states have the freedom to choose their preferred languages under the policy.
The dispute intensified after the Centre withheld Rs 2,152 crore allocated for Tamil Nadu’s Samagra Shiksha scheme, citing the state’s refusal to implement the NEP.
Tamil Nadu has historically opposed the three-language formula, viewing it as a step toward enforcing Hindi, while the central government argues that the policy helps students access employment opportunities across different regions.