'Hindi speakers sell Pani Puri': TN Education minister adds fuel to language controversy
"We were told that learning Hindi would land us in jobs, did we get? You go and see in our state and in Coimbatore, who are those people who sell pani puris," he said while sharing the stage with Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi.
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Adding fuel to the ongoing language debate in the country, Tamil Nadu Education Minister K Ponmudy suggested that "Hindi speakers sell pani puris in Coimbatore". He also asked when people in the southern state are learning Tamil and English, then what is the need for other languages.
While addressing a convocation event at Bharathiar University in Coimbatore, the Tamil Nadu minister said, "In Tamil Nadu, there are two languages – English and Tamil. While English is an international language, Tamil is a local language."
"We were told that learning Hindi would land us in jobs, did we get? You go and see in our state and in Coimbatore, who are those people who sell pani puris," he said while sharing the stage with Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi.
K Ponmudy went on to say, "English is an international language. (CN) Annadurai strongly batted for English and Tamil. He used to tell a story about a person making two separate entrances for cats and rats. That person was told that the rat can also enter through the entrance made for cats."
"We are learning an international language, English. What is the need for other languages?" asked the state education minister.
Ponmudy claimed that Tamil Nadu is at the forefront of the education system in India and stated that Tamil students were ready to learn any language. However, Hindi should only be an optional language and not a compulsory one, said the minister.
There is an ongoing debate over the implementation of the Hindi language across the country, with the BJP-led Centre pushing for Hindi's pan-India use and southern states vehemently opposing it.