‘Never Opposed Hindi, Only Its Imposition’: Pawan Kalyan Slams ‘False Narratives’ On NEP

Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Saturday dismissed allegations that he opposes Hindi, stating that he is against making it compulsory under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kalyan said, “Either imposing a language forcibly or opposing a language blindly; both don’t help to achieve the objective of National & Cultural integration of our Bharat. I had never opposed Hindi as a language. I only opposed making it compulsory. When the NEP 2020 itself does not enforce Hindi, spreading false narratives about its imposition is nothing but an attempt to mislead the public.”  

Either imposing a language forcibly or opposing a language blindly; both doesn’t help to achieve the objective of National &Cultural integration of our Bharat.

I had never opposed Hindi as a language. I only opposed making it compulsory. When the NEP 2020 itself does not…

— Pawan Kalyan (@PawanKalyan) March 15, 2025

He further clarified that the NEP allows students to learn any two Indian languages, including their mother tongue, along with a foreign language. “If they do not wish to study Hindi, they can and also opt for Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Sanskrit, Gujarati, Assamese, Kashmiri, Odia, Bengali, Punjabi, Sindhi, Bodo, Dogri, Konkani, Maithili, Meitei, Nepali, Santali, Urdu, or any other Indian language,” Kalyan added.  

The Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister had earlier hit out at Tamil Nadu politicians for what he termed as “hypocrisy” in their opposition to Hindi. Speaking at the Jana Sena Party’s 12th foundation day event in Pithampuram, Kakinada, on Friday, he accused them of benefiting financially from Hindi-speaking audiences while opposing the language politically. “I do not understand why some criticise Sanskrit. Why do Tamil Nadu politicians oppose Hindi while allowing their movies to be dubbed in Hindi for financial gain? They want money from Bollywood but refuse to accept Hindi—what kind of logic is that?” he questioned.

His remarks follow Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s accusation that the Union government is attempting to impose Hindi and the state’s refusal to adopt the three-language formula proposed in the NEP as a mark of protest.  

‘Pawan Kalyan Was Not Even Born When…’: DMK Leader After Pawan Kalyan’s Remarks On Hindi Row

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader TKS Elangovan criticised Kalyan for his stance, calling him ignorant of Tamil Nadu’s political history. “We have been opposing Hindi since 1938… We passed legislation in the state assembly that Tamil Nadu will always follow the two-language formula based on the advice and suggestions of education experts, not actors… The bill was passed way back in 1968 when Pawan Kalyan was not even born. He doesn’t know the politics of Tamil Nadu,” Elangovan told news agency ANI. He further alleged that Kalyan’s support for NEP was an attempt to align himself with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

#WATCH | Chennai, Tamil Nadu: On the statement of Andhra Pradesh DCM Pawan Kalyan, DMK leader TKS Elangovan says, “We have been opposing Hindi since 1938…We had passed legislation in the state assembly that Tamil Nadu will always follow the two-language formula because of the… pic.twitter.com/bHvjKZgDF1

— ANI (@ANI) March 15, 2025

“He wants to somehow support the BJP so that he can gain something out of the BJP government,” he added.  

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) spokesperson Kovai Sathyan echoed similar sentiments, stating that NEP provides a means for Hindi to gradually dominate Tamil Nadu.

#WATCH | Chennai, Tamil Nadu | On Andhra Pradesh Dy CM and JanaSena Party chief Pawan Kalyan’s statement, AIADMK National Spokesperson Kovai Sathyan says, “… The DMK has taken the NEP as a political opportunity to play dirty politics… Pawan Kalyan is linking business with the… pic.twitter.com/eC39LLOf60

— ANI (@ANI) March 15, 2025

“The DMK has taken the NEP as a political opportunity to play dirty politics… Pawan Kalyan is linking business with the cultural fabric of Tamil Nadu… We see NEP as a backdoor entry for Hindi to sneak in and dominate in due course of time, which the central government and agencies have already done in Tamil Nadu,” he told ANI on Saturday.