New Delhi: A day after a privilege motion was moved against him in Parliament, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan hit back at the DMK, accusing the party of double standards. On Monday, DMK MP Kanimozhi had moved the motion against Dharmendra and claimed that the minister had tried to mislead the country by claiming that the Tamil Nadu government has done a U-turn on the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
On Tuesday, Dharmendra took to ‘X’ and shared: “Yesterday, DMK MPs and Hon’ble CM (M K) Stalin accused me of misleading the Parliament regarding Tamil Nadu’s consent for establishment of PM-SHRI Schools. I stand by my statement made in the Parliament and am sharing the consent letter from Tamil Nadu School Education Department dated 15th March 2024…..Why this sudden change of stance on NEP? Definitely for political brownies and reviving DMK’s political fortunes. This retrograde politics of DMK is a great disservice to the bright future of Tamil Nadu and its students.”
Claiming that the DMK is raking the language issue as a diversionary tactic to try and shield it’s governance and welfare deficit, Dharmendra goes on to write: “DMK’s latest cacophony on language imposition and its stance on NEP’s three-language formula exposes their hypocrisy. Opposition to NEP 2020 has nothing to do with preservation of Tamil pride, language and culture but everything to do with gaining political dividends. DMK bats for promotion of Tamil language. But, the truth is that they have done little to promote and preserve Tamil language, literature and literary icons.”
He then referred to UDISE+ data and claimed that enrolments in Tamil Medium dropped from 65.87 lakh in 2018-19 to 46.83 lakh in 2023-24. This is a reduction of over 19.05 lakh students in a period of five years.
“67% of students are now in English medium schools, while Tamil medium enrolment has dropped from 54% (2018-19) to 36% (2023-24). In Govt schools, English medium enrolment jumped 5X from 3.4L to 17.7L in just five years. Tamil enrolment fell by 7.3L in Govt-aided schools, reflecting a deep shift in preference. These numbers reveal the real story—Enrolments in Tamil medium is on a continuous decline. This isn’t just a shift in language preference, it’s colonial mindset at play. English is seen as the gateway to status and jobs, Indian languages are seen as a symbol of backwardness,” Dharmendra claimed.
According to him, encouraging education in mother language is one of the most crucial aspects of NEP 2020. It is one of the surest pathways to foster critical thinking in young minds and unleash the full potential of India’s demography, he wrote.
“DMK’s empty rhetoric on NEP and language imposition cannot hide their failure. Their agenda is crystal clear. Politics and power at the cost of future of Tamil Nadu. I humbly request Hon’ble CM to not view NEP 2020 from a political lens. Please prioritise interest of our children in Tamil Nadu over political gains,” Dharmendra added.
