Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday said he was encouraged by the rally against Hindi imposition in Mumbai led by Uddhav Thackeray and his speech on the issue. “The anti-Hindi movement launched by the people of Tamil Nadu and the DMK has crossed the State borders and has sparked a storm in Maharashtra,” he said in a message on his X page.

He stated that the BJP government, which had made teaching Hindi a precondition for allocating funds to Tamil Nadu, backed down after the people of Maharashtra raised their voices against Hindi imposition.

Mr. Stalin said the BJP-led Union government had no response to the question posed by Raj Thackeray, the cousin of Mr. Uddhav Thackeray, at the event. “What is the third language for Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, or Rajasthan? All Hindi-speaking States lag behind us in development. Yet, we are being forced to learn Hindi,” Mr. Stalin quoted Mr. Raj Thackeray as saying.

‘Vindictive policy’

The Chief Minister questioned whether the BJP government would reconsider its vindictive policy against Tamil Nadu. “It has said it would release ₹2,152 crore only if Tamil Nadu accepts the National Education Policy,” he said. Mr. Stalin emphasised that the struggle of the Tamil people against the imposition of Hindi was rational and aimed at protecting India’s pluralism.