Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in response to DMK MP Kanimozhi’s allegations of the Central Government imposing Hindi, emphasized that in Tamil Nadu, a mandate against learning Hindi and Sanskrit was enforced in the guise of resisting Hindi imposition.
She said that one has the power and the right to promote Tamil, but not prevent people from learning Hindi or Sanskrit due to their hubris.
Madam Sitharaman makes the argument based on her lived experiences. Many from her generation would testify for how Hindi was virtually absent in school classrooms of Tamil Nadu.
Responding to Nirmala Sitharaman, acclaimed singer Chinmayi Sripada took to peddle that anyone in Tamil Nadu can learn any language they want.
I respectfully beg to differ with her.
Not every child in Tamil Nadu is as privileged as me or Chinmayi madam. She seems to have studied in The Children’s Garden School and Hindu Senior Secondary School both of which are private schools where Hindi is taught to students.
I too studied in a small private school in Coimbatore where Hindi was taught to me as third language because of which I was able to atleast read and write Hindi when I went to Pune to pursue law. It was only there I picked up Hindi but with lot of struggle.
Those studying in Tamil Nadu government schools do not have the privilege that me or Madam Chinmayi have. So, I kindly request Chinmayi madam to please acknowledge her privileged pedestal before pontificating.
Chinmayi madam harps on to the fact that a lot of people learn Hindi through the Hindi Prachar Sabha in Chennai.
The fact that people are thronging Hindi Prachar Sabha itself is proof that Tamil people want to study Hindi but are not given the option in Tamil Nadu state government schools.
To Chinmayi madam and all other naysayer of Hindi in Tamil Nadu, I ask just one question – What is the harm in just providing an option to study Hindi as third or second language in Tamil Nadu state government schools? This is the point that Hon’ble Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman wanted to drive home in her Parliament speech.
Madam Chinmayi says that the only factor preventing Tamils from speaking Hindi is the mocking that follows when Tamils speak Hindi.
I agree that people mock when south folks especially those from Tamil Nadu who speak Hindi because of the strong accent or the mistakes made in putting the gender (For example, it is “Neendh Aa Rahi Hai” and not “Neendh Aa Raha Hai”). Even today, I make those mistakes but that doesn’t stop me from communicating in Hindi to my Hindi-speaking friends.
Chinmayi madam should ask herself why Gujaratis or Bengalis or Assamese who are as passionate as Tamils about their language don’t have that problem.
That’s because they’ve been exposed to Hindi from schooling. Telugu people or Kannadigas are easily able to pick up Hindi because of their exposure to Hindi. Their love for their language doesn’t make them hate Hindi.
It is only the Tamils who suffer because of the Hindi-hate whipped up by DMK and its likes. Just cross Gummidipoondi and a rudimentary Hindi is enough to survive. The anti-Hindi agitation was justified in a sense as Congress under then CM Bhakthavachalam tried to forcefully impose Hindi. But the agitation went too far resulting in Hindi hate which manifests even today – be it calling Hindi-speakers as called “paanipoori waalas”, “cow belt” or people like you adding fuel to the fire by speaking against the learning of an Indian language.
The last line in her post is all about making false equivalences. Who is preventing Chinmayi madam or anyone else for that matter from eating what they want, worship whomsoever they want, speaking whatever language they want, loving whomsoever they want? Did the Central Government pass any law preventing people from doing any of the above?
It is my kind request to Chinmayi madam to not get carried away with the rhetorics peddled by her Leftists and so-called “Liberal” friends.
It is people like Chinmayi madam and those in power today (in Tamil Nadu) who are not allowing poor people to learn a language. All I ask Chinmayi madam is to please let poor Tamils to also reap the benefits that she reaped with her privilege.
Thanks.
SG Suryah is the State Secretary of BJP Tamil Nadu.
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