While the Center has strongly pressed the proposal of the three-language formula in the recently approved National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the formula has got boomeranged against the center as the three-language policy met with the strong resistance from the Tamil Nadu political parties including the allied parties of the BJP, leaving the Central ruling party to stand alone in the state.
DMK party is one of the parties that has been on the front of voicing against the three-language formula which the parties claim that the Center has been attempting to impose the Hindi language on the students. While the opposition parties called the ruling ADMK party to reprimand and codemn the three-language formula, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami has convened a meet with the ministers to discuss the NEP 2020 on Monday.
Following the meeting, the Chief Minister has also asserted that there is no place for the three-language formula in Tamil Nadu and stated that the existing two-language system will continue in the state. By citing that it saddens and painful to know that the NEP has the three-language formula, the Chief Minister pressed that the state won't permit such implementation. He further requested the Center to re-consider the three-language policy in the view of the sentiments and interests of the people of Tamil Nadu. He added that the state has been firm in the two-language policy for eight decades.
Parties including DMK and PMK had thanked and welcomed the Chief Minister's assertion and paying heed to the opposition parties. In his statement, DMK President Stalin thanked the Chief Minister for opposing the three-language formula of the NEP 2020 and he further called the Chief Minister to adopt the resolution to reject the NEP 2020. PMK's founder Ramadoss has also welcomed the Chief Minister's statement.
The leader of the PMK party, which observes alliance with the BJP, said that the party strongly supports the two-language policy and he also said that the PMK party is also against the NEP's proposal of conducting board examinations for classes 3, 5, and 8. Following Ramadoss, PMK's leader and Rajya Sabha MP Anbumani Ramadoss said the introduction of the board examinations for classes 3,5, and 8 was vicious.
He further stated that the proposal goes against the students who hail from the poor and marginalized sections. He added that the three-language policy has been intended to impose Sanskirt. In line with that, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee said that it supports the two-language policy. The party's state president KS Alagiri said that Congress will oppose the imposition of Hindi on the students.
According to the reports, one of the main concerns raised by the parties is that the NEP 2020 is against the students and the constitution and they further condemned the center to approve the policy through the cabinet before tabling it in the Parliament. On the other side, the state BJP leaders have been pressing their stances with less political support and with its allied parties raising voice against the NEP. The top leaders of the state said that their allied parties have caught under political pressure.
The leaders said that the prevailing resistance won't have any adverse impact on the growth of the party in the state. One of the senior leaders of the BJP party said that the party is hopeful that the people of Tamil Nadu will welcome the Center's proposed education and environment policies. By citing that the existing situation won't be the dispute for the party and its alliance, the leader appealed to the leader, whoever voicing against the NEP and EIA 2020, to read the full facts and provisions framed in these new policies.
Tamil Nadu BJP's vice-president claimed that the statement from the Chief Minister has disappointed the party. By claiming that the opposition parties are painting the Center's policies with the political color, she maintained that these parties are spreading misinformation that the NEP would impose Hindi on the students. Another party leader said that they would try to convince the allies over the differences, which had exemplified that the BJP had left isolated on the political stage over the controversial proposals.
Earlier, the DMK and its allied parties have written a letter to the Chief Minister concerning the NEP 2020 in which they said that the NEP would be saffronizing and commercializing the education and it would also give more importance to Hindi and Sanskrit and the policy sets out to be standing against the social justice, diversity, equality, and principles of federalism. On Tuesday, BJP Tamil Nadu President Murugan said that the students are interested and willing to learn the additional language. By urging the state government to encourage the students to learn, the BJP state president has maintained that the NEP has been aimed at the overall development of the students.
On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu School Education Minister Sengottaiyan said that the state government would be installing the committee, and based on the recommendations and suggestions of the committee, the state government would take further decisions on the NEP 2020. According to the NEP, Sanskirt will be offered at all levels of school and higher education. The policy said that it intends to promote multilingualism with the view of upholding national integration.
Though it mandates three-language formula in the educational system of which two must be Indian languages, the policy says it won't impose the language on the states. NEP also says that the freedom of choosing the two Indian languages should be left to the states, regions, or students.
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