- Tamil Nadu Education Minister criticised Amit Shah's remarks on English language access
- He called English a global tool for progress and not a colonial relic
- DMK opposed BJP and RSS "efforts" to portray English as elitist and exclusive
Tamil Nadu Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi has criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his recent remarks on the English language, calling it a veiled attempt to deny access to knowledge and empowerment for the underprivileged.
In a sharp response posted on X (formerly Twitter), Mr Poyyamozhi wrote, "English is no longer a colonial relic - it's a global tool of progress. Nations like China, Japan, Korea, Israel and Germany teach it not as some colonial hangover, but to lead in science, tech, and trade."
Taking aim at the BJP and its ideological parent, the RSS, he added, "Here in India, Amit Shah and the RSS want to paint English as elitist - not because it harms our culture, but because it empowers the poor, Dalits, and backward communities to rise. Like Sanskrit once was, they now want English kept out of reach for the masses. This isn't about language - it's about control."
The DMK leader asserted that Tamil Nadu believes in equal access, offering Tamil for identity and English for opportunity - a dual-language approach that he said lifts all children rather than leaving many behind.
His statement came in the wake of controversial comments by Amit Shah at a book launch, where the Union Minister said, "In our lifetime, we will see a society in which those speaking English will feel ashamed, that day is not far". He further claimed that Indian culture and identity cannot be understood through "foreign languages".
Mr Shah's comments have reignited the ongoing language row between the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government and the BJP at the Centre. The DMK has consistently opposed the three-language policy under the National Education Policy (NEP), terming it a "backdoor attempt" to impose Hindi and marginalise non-Hindi speakers in the country's diverse linguistic landscape.
While the BJP maintains that the policy only promotes learning additional Indian languages and strengthens the mother tongue, the DMK counters that in practice, only Hindi gets prioritised - particularly pointing to the Kendriya Vidyalayas in Tamil Nadu, where Tamil teachers are often not appointed 'citing' low enrolment, leading to growing fears of linguistic exclusion.
