DMK vs Centre as language row shakes Parliament: Is NEP pushing Hindi? Key FAQ’s answered

The debate over the three-language formula in the National Education Policy (NEP) rocked Lok Sabha on Monday after a war of words broke out between Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and DMK members after Pradhan described the Tamil Nadu government and the people of the state inappropriately. 

Pradhan’s remarks triggered protests by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MPs, and his words were later expunged by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. The Speaker warned of action against DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran during the protest over the alleged ‘Hindi’ imposition row. He dared Maran that if he had made ‘these’ remarks on record, he would have suspended him from the house.

Outside Parliament, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin hit back and accused Pradhan of “arrogance” and of “insulting the people” of Tamil Nadu. In a strongly worded post in Tamil on his X, Stalin called out the Union Minister’s “arrogance” and said that he was speaking like an “arrogant king.” who “needs to be disciplined.”

Mint answers some FAQ’s about the controversy

DMK vs Centre: What is the controversy?

At the heart of the war of words between the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre and DMK-ruled Tamil Nadu is the ‘three-language formula,’ part of the National Education Policy, 2020 (NEP).

While the Centre maintains that this policy is meant to ensure that youth get employment across regions, Tamil Nadu’s DMK leaders call it an attempt to impose Hindi on the state. The Centre has denied charges that the three-language formula imposes Hindi on the state.

What do the two sides say?

Minister Pradhan has asserted in many interviews and statements that the NEP would not impose Hindi on states. He alleged that Tamil Nadu’s opposition had “political reasons” behind it.

“I don’t want to answer to the political ambitions of few people. NEP 2020 is focused on different languages of India, be it Hindi, Tamil, Odia, or Punjabi. All the languages have equal importance. In Tamil Nadu, few are opposing because of politics,” Pradhan said in one of the interviews.

DMK leader and Lok Sabha MP Kanimozhi has said that the ruling party of Tamil Nadu was not against any language but against the ‘imposition’ of the three-language policy.

“Learning another language over and above these two should be a child’s choice. Why are we forcing every student to learn three languages or four languages? Even countries such as Finland, which are doing very well in terms of education, do not force their students to learn more than two languages. So, why are we doing this?” she said in an interview with Indian Express.

What triggered the row now?

The DMK vs Centre clash started last month when Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said in Varanasi that he would withhold ₹2,400 crore funds under the Samagra Shiksha scheme for Tamil Nadu if the state doesn’t fully implement the NEP with the three-language formula.

The Parliament showdown on the first day of the second leg of the Budget Session on March 10 was triggered when DMK MP T Sumathy, in a supplementary question, claimed that around ₹2,000 crore ( ₹2,400) meant for Tamil Nadu had been diverted to other states due to its opposition to the NEP. Sumathy called it “a death knell for cooperative federalism” and asked whether the Centre could use funds as a tool for “revenge”, at the cost of schoolchildren.

What does NEP 2020 say about language instruction?

The NEP 2020 says that the medium of instruction for students in both public and private schools until at least Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond, will be in the home language or the mother tongue or the local language or the regional language. Thereafter, the home or local language shall continue to be taught as a language wherever possible.

“Research clearly shows that children pick up languages extremely quickly between the ages of two and eight and that multilingualism has great cognitive benefits to young students, children will be exposed to different languages early on (but with a particular emphasis on the mother tongue), starting from the Foundational Stage onwards,” it reads

What does NEP say about three-language formula?

After years of discussion, the NEP 2020 has replaced the 1986 education policy. However, the policy’s emphasis on a three-language system has not gone down well with Tamil Nadu’s ruling party.

The three-language formula in NEP 2020 recommends that students learn three languages, at least two of which are native to India. The three-language formula in NEP 2020 is a departure from the earlier 1968 policy which emphasised on the study of Hindi, English and a modern Indian language (preferably one of the southern languages) in Hindi-speaking states and Hindi, English and a regional language in non-Hindi speaking states.

The NEP proposes an “early implementation of the three-language formula to promote multilingualism” from the school level. The NEP 2020 document, reads that the three-language formula will “continue to be implemented while keeping in mind the Constitutional provisions, aspirations of the people, regions, and the Union, and the need to promote multilingualism as well as promote national unity.”

Does NEP impose Hindi language?

The NEP 2020 says that it provides greater flexibility in the three-language formula and that no language will be imposed on any state. This is something Pradhan has asserted many times.

“The three languages learned by children will be the choices of states, regions, and of course, the students themselves, so long as at least two of the three languages are native to India. In particular, students who wish to change one or more of the three languages they are studying may do so in Grade 6 or 7, as long as they are able to demonstrate basic proficiency in three languages (including one language of India at the literature level) by the end of secondary school,” reads the policy.

What does NEP say about hiring language teachers?

The NEP 2020 also says that from the implementation stage, both the central and state governments will invest heavily in hiring a large number of language teachers in all regional languages across the country. This effort will focus particularly on languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

“States, especially states from different regions of India, may enter into bilateral agreements to hire teachers in large numbers from each other, to satisfy the three-language formula in their respective states, and also to encourage the study of Indian languages across the country,” it reads

Why is DMK opposing?

The NEP does not mandate Hindi as part of the three-language formula. It, however, clearly says that the third language can be any. The DMK leaders, including Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, however, alleged that it is centre’s backdoor attempt to impose Hindi. 

The DMK has said that it will continue with the two-language policy of the state.

Is any language encouraged in NEP?

The policy, however, does encourage some languages. The document has a full section on Sanskrit and pushes for its inclusion as an option in the three-language formula. The policy document also says that classical languages, including classical Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Odia and additionally Pali, Persian, and Prakrit should be available as options.

Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests

Tamil Nadu has historically had a ‘two-language’ policy – Tamil and English. There were widespread protests in the state against what it calls ‘Hindi imposition’  in 1930s and 1960s as well. 

The row over the BJP’s three-language push in the state, comes ahead of assembly election in Tamil Nadu next year. The BJP has never won an assembly election in Tamil Nadu.