DMK president M.K. Stalin. File
| Photo Credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam

Mr. Ilaiyaraaja said that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin’s words encouraged him further to compose for Sangam literary works.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin unveils a portrait of Periyar at University of Oxford
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin with MP Catherine West, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Indo-Pacific)
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Chennai:

The Linguistic Minorities Forum of Tamil Nadu (LIMFOT) on Wednesday wrote to Chief Minister MK Stalin to implement the National Educational Policy (NEP 2020) and pave the way for the three-language formula in school education in the State.

Chairman of the Linguistic Minorities Forum of Tamil Nadu CMK Reddy that implementing the three-language formula is essential for accommodating the minority language in school education.

“Nowhere it is mentioned in the NEP 2020 that either Hindi, or Sanskrit or any other language is compulsory. The only thing is every state is advised to have three languages so that it will accommodate the minority language besides the main state language and English. This is what they want. If the students whose mother tongue is Hindi, they can learn it. The mother tongue should be in the syllabus. That is what the Supreme Court said,” Mr Reddy said.

Mr Stalin on Sunday slammed Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan for his remarks that Tamil Nadu would have to come to terms with the Indian Constitution when reacting to Tamil Nadu’s government’s stance against implementing the language policy of the NEP.

“Which section of the Indian Constitution is making the three-language policy mandatory? Can the [Union] Education Minister point out?” Mr Stalin said in a post on X.

Earlier, Union Minister of State for Ministry of Information and Broadcasting L Murugan came out in defence of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

“The National Education Policy (NEP) was not implemented overnight; it has come into effect after 40 years of deliberation. Considering the global competitive landscape, it is our responsibility to prepare our youth to meet global challenges. Additionally, the New Education Policy encourages research and promotes student participation in academic advancements. The NEP is designed to encourage education in one’s mother tongue, emphasizing that children should study in their native language,” he told reporters.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Chennai:

The Tamil Nadu government has announced its decision to boycott the Republic Day tea party to be hosted by Governor R.N. Ravi at the Raj Bhavan on January 26.

This move comes as a protest against the Governor’s alleged actions, which the ruling government claims are obstructive to its functioning.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), led by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, stated that no party representatives would attend the Republic Day event. Several other political parties, including Congress, the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), and Left-wing parties, have also declared their decision to skip the reception.

MDMK General Secretary Vaiko accused the Governor of undermining the state government from the day he assumed office.

He criticised R.N. Ravi for withholding assent to bills passed by the Legislative Assembly and claimed that the Governor was pushing a Hindutva agenda, which he said goes against the principles of the Constitution.

Vaiko said: “MDMK has been demanding the removal of R.N. Ravi as Governor. He has continuously functioned as an agent of Hindutva principles and trampled upon constitutional norms.”

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) President K. Selvaperunthagai also accused the Governor of acting against the interests of the state and its people.

In a social media post, he highlighted the delay in appointing Vice-Chancellors for state universities and criticized Ravi for refusing to approve bills passed by the Legislative Assembly.

Condemning the Governor’s actions, Communist Party of India (Marxist) State Secretary P. Shanmugam said: “The Governor has disrespected the Constitution, cooperative federalism, and the authority of the Legislative Assembly. He has lost the moral qualification to continue as the Governor of Tamil Nadu.”

The VCK echoed similar sentiments, emphasising that the Governor’s actions threaten the autonomy of the state.

In a surprising political twist, the Raj Bhavan extended an invitation to Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader and actor Vijay to attend the reception.

While invitations have been sent to leaders of various political parties, Vijay’s potential attendance has sparked speculation. It remains unclear whether the actor will participate in the event.

It is customary for the Governor to host a tea party at Raj Bhavan on Republic Day.

However, the relationship between the Tamil Nadu government and Governor R.N. Ravi has been contentious. Despite this, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and his cabinet colleagues attended the Independence Day reception hosted by the Governor on August 15, 2024, as part of the national celebrations.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Tamil Nadu BJP demanded an unconditional apology from Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, while actor Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettai Kazhagam (TVK) said the DMK-led government has deceived the people regarding the issue of National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET).

The criticism came after Chief Minister MK Stalin told the state Assembly on Friday that NEET would have been abolished if the INDIA bloc had emerged victorious in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He added that only the Central government has the authority to scrap the exam.

BJP state secretary SG Suryah accused Udhayanidhi Stalin of “shamelessly lying” to the people of Tamil Nadu during the 2021 Assembly election campaign by stating that abolishing NEET would be the DMK government’s priority. He also clarified that the central government has no role in implementing NEET, as it is a directive of the Supreme Court.

His statement comes a day after Vijay said on social media that the DMK deceived people with false promises, adding that it was a major poll campaign issue. Vijay said, “This is a significant social and political issue for Tamil Nadu. During the 2021 Assembly elections, the DMK promised to abolish NEET if returned to power. However, they knew fully well that this decision could only be taken by the central government.”

Speaking in the Assembly, the Chief Minister had also said that NEET did not exist during the tenures of his predecessors M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa. He argued that the exam was introduced only during the tenure of Edappadi K Palaniswami’s government. MK Stalin also accused the opposition leader of remaining ‘silent’ for nearly a year during his tenure as chief minister when the Centre introduced the test.

New Delhi:

Hitting out at Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin for his “childish” jab amid the National Anthem row, Governor RN Ravi has said “such arrogance is not good” and warned that the country would not tolerate such “brazen insult” of the anthem and the Constitution.

The DMK government in Tamil Nadu and the Raj Bhavan have been trading barbs after the Governor walked out of the Assembly on January 6 in protest of the National Anthem not being sung at the beginning of his address.

As per the tradition in Tamli Nadu Assembly, state anthem Tamil Thai Valthu is sung when the House meets and the National Anthem at the end. But, Governor Ravi has taken exception to this norm and said the national anthem should be sung at both times.

Thiru @mkstalin asserts that insisting on due respect to the National Anthem and doing fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution is “absurd” and “childish”. Thanks for betraying the true intentions of the coalition of interests and ideologies to which he is a leader that…

— RAJ BHAVAN, TAMIL NADU (@rajbhavan_tn) January 12, 2025

“The Constitution of Bharat and the National Anthem were once again insulted in the Tamil Nadu Assembly today. Respecting the National Anthem is among the first Fundamental Duty as enshrined in our Constitution. It is sung in all the state legislatures at the beginning and the end of Governor’s address,” the Raj Bhavan said in a statement after the Governor’s walkout. “Today on arrival of Governor to the House only Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu was sung. Governor respectfully reminded the House of its Constitutional Duty and fervently appealed to the Hon’ble Chief Minister who is the Leader of the House and the Hon’ble Speaker for singing the National Anthem. However, they cussedly refused. It is a matter of grave concern. Not to be a party to such brazen disrespect to the Constitution and the National Anthem, Governor in deep anguish left the House,” the Raj Bhavan said.

Soon after, Chief Minister MK Stalin said in a post on X that the Governor had made it a custom to violate the Assembly’s tradition and called his actions “childish”. “According to the Constitution, it is a tradition of legislative democracy for the state governor to read the government’s address at the beginning of the year! He has made it his custom to violate it. It is childish that the governor, who has cut out what was there and added what was not, has gone without reading it this time,” he said, referring to passages skipped by the Governor in his earlier speeches in the Assembly.

Doubling down, the DMK chief yesterday told the House, “The Governor comes to the Assembly but returns without addressing the House. That’s why I had said his actions were childish.

“I think the Governor is unable to digest the fact that Tamil Nadu is developing. I may be an ordinary person but this Legislative Assembly came into existence due to the feelings of crore of people,” Mr Stalin said, adding that the Assembly “should not see such things again”.

Hitting back, the Raj Bhavan’s official handle posted on X today, “Thiru @mkstalin asserts that insisting on due respect to the National Anthem and doing fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution is “absurd” and “childish”. Thanks for betraying the true intentions of the coalition of interests and ideologies to which he is a leader that does not accept and respect Bharat as a nation and Her Constitution.”

“Such arrogance is not good. Please do not forget that Bharat is the supreme Mother and the Constitution the supreme faith for her children. They will not like or tolerate such brazen insult,” it added.

Governor Ravi and the MK Stalin government have shared frosty ties ever since he took over in 2021. The DMK government has accused him of acting like a BJP spokesperson and blocking Bills and appointments. The Governor has said the Constitution empowers him to withhold his assent to legislation. The dispute between the Raj Bhavan and state government has also reached the Supreme Court and the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Chennai:

Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi was unable to digest that the state was developing and his decision not to address the Assembly was “childish”, Chief Minister M K Stalin said on Saturday.

The state Legislative Assembly has been witnessing strange scenes for the last few years after Mr Ravi took over as Governor, he said. “The Governor comes to the Assembly but returns without addressing the House. That’s why I had said that his actions were childish,” Mr Stalin told the Assembly.

As per Article 176 of the Constitution, the Governor has to deliver his address to the Legislative Assembly at the commencement of the session. “But he appears to be keen on violating the rules in a planned manner,” the Chief Minister said winding up the debate on the motion of thanks to the Governor for his address.

In 2022, this Governor delivered his address without altering the speech. But in the following three years, he avoided delivering his customary address citing ‘absurd’ reasons, the Chief Minister said.

Singing the Tamil anthem (Tamil Thai Valthu) before the session starts and playing the national anthem after the address has been the tradition for long. “I think, the Governor is unable to digest the fact that Tamil Nadu is developing. I may be an ordinary person but this Legislative Assembly came into existence due to the feelings of crore of people,” Mr Stalin said.

This House cannot bear to see the Governor doing something with political motives that drags the position and responsibility he held by not respecting the dignity of this Assembly, not respecting the people’s feelings, and ‘daring’ to insult the Tamil anthem. “We should not see such things again,” the Chief Minister added.

On January 6, Mr Ravi left the Assembly without delivering the customary address. The Raj Bhavan later said that he left ‘in deep anguish’ as the national anthem wasn’t played.

“Disrespecting the Constitution does not augur well for democracy,” the Governor had then said. Reacting, Stalin had said, “it was childish of the Governor choosing not to read the government address.” In his reply to the House today, Stalin reminded that the Dravidian uprising arose against neglect, humiliation, and oppression. Stalin, who is president of DMK, exuded confidence that his party would certainly form the government for the seventh time.

On the opposition AIADMK members turning up in the Assembly wearing black shirts and sarees to protest against the state government over the Anna University student sexual assault case, he sought to know if they had the courage to stage a ‘black shirt’ protest against the Governor who continued to insult Tamil Nadu.

“I would have been happy if the AIADMK had worn black shirts to condemn the Union Government or the national education policy,” the Chief Minister said.

On the law and order situation, Stalin said the police functioned independently and brought down the crimes. He was a liberal in permitting agitations by the opposition parties, the CM said.

Later, Leader of the House Duraimurugan asked Speaker M Appavu to pronounce his ruling on the discussion between the Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami over the facts on filing FIR in the Pollachi sexual assault case.

Appavu stated that after perusing the evidence submitted to him by the Chief Minister and Palaniswami, it was clear that the FIR was registered twelve days after the crime was reported.

“The Chief Minister had conveyed the correct information to the House,” Appavu said.

As the AIADMK members protested against his ruling, Appavu said he would rest the case at this juncture without going into details, and adjourned the House sine die. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Out of the 10 fishermen apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy, six belong to Tamil Nadu, MK Stalin said.