AIADMK Slams Centre For Indirect 'Language Imposition' By Naming Laws In Hindi, Sanskrit

Tamil Nadu's principal Opposition party, the AIADMK, on Sunday accused the central government of indirectly imposing Hindi by naming laws in Hindi and Sanskrit.

During its executive committee and general council meeting held in Chennai, the party passed a resolution condemning the Centre's practice of renaming laws and urged that laws should instead be named in English.

The resolution noted that Hindi is merely one of the 22 languages listed in the Constitution's Eighth Schedule. It also emphasised that Tamil Nadu continues to follow the two-language formula of Tamil and English.

"Under the circumstances, the central government naming laws in Hindi and Sanskrit can be considered only as an indirect imposition of Hindi. It is very condemnable that the Centre changed the names of the three criminal laws that were already in English," the resolution stated.

The AIADMK further demanded that all laws enacted by the Union government must be named in English.

The party passed 16 additional resolutions during the meeting. One significant resolution called for the subject of education to be returned to the State List of the Constitution. The AIADMK also urged the central government to ensure financial allocations to Tamil Nadu without any bias.

The Opposition party criticised the DMK government, accusing it of failing to honour its promises made during the 2021 Assembly elections. AIADMK leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami, in his address, criticised the DMK for holding Assembly sessions for just 113 days since assuming power, despite pledging to hold proceedings for 100 days annually.

"The DMK government should have conducted sessions for 400 days by now. This failure shows their fear of the AIADMK," Palaniswami said. He also questioned why the state government had not fulfilled its promise of live broadcasting Assembly proceedings, accusing it of "blacking out" speeches delivered by AIADMK legislators.

The AIADMK further criticised the DMK government's handling of several key issues, including the tungsten mining controversy. The party alleged that the DMK had staged "drama" over scrapping NEET while failing to take any substantive action.

Additionally, the AIADMK condemned the DMK government for its inaction in releasing Muslim prisoners who have been incarcerated for over 20 years, despite having promised to do so. The party also accused the DMK of failing to adequately respond to the aftermath of Cyclone Fengal, which caused severe flooding and heavy rainfall across the state.

Palaniswami highlighted the achievements of the AIADMK during its decade-long rule, including managing multiple cyclones, implementing 7.5 per cent internal reservations for government school students in medical colleges, and initiating infrastructure projects such as the construction of check dams. He also praised the AIADMK's efforts in providing relief during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A resolution adopted during the meeting declared the party's determination to return Palaniswami to the chief minister's position by winning the 2026 Assembly elections.