Tamil Nadu   

Respect Tamil people's sentiments: Karunanidhi

Special Correspondent

Issue of Hindi advertisements to newspapers in the State

CHENNAI: Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on Friday urged the Centre to respect the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu while issuing advertisements to newspapers in the State.

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam member G. Hari who raised the issue in the House through a special mention during the zero hour, said some departments of the Central Government recently issued advertisements to newspapers in the State in Hindi. This ran counter to the assurance given by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on the language issue in the 1960s.

He also recalled how the Centre withdrew its decision relating to the use of Hindi on milestones on the national highways in the State, following protests registered by the former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

Mr. Hari wanted to know the State Government's stand and that of parties including the Congress, Pattali Makkal Katchi and the two communist parties on the issue relating to issuance of advertisements in Hindi.

Intervening, Mr. Karunanidhi said there was no need for resorting to unnecessary arguments at a time when it had to be conveyed to North India, more particularly the Central Government that the people of the State were united on the language issue.

Referring to the apprehensions raised by the AIADMK member on the issue, the Chief Minister said Nehru had not given any assurance with regard to languages to be used in advertisements.

Welcoming the "change of heart" in the AIADMK on the language issue, he said as many as 10 Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MLAs were disqualified during the earlier AIADMK rule for taking part in the agitation against "imposition of Hindi."

However, none of the parties in the House would agree to issuance of advertisements by the Centre in Hindi language alone, he said adding that such advertisements should be in Tamil, English and Hindi. "We will not tolerate domination of any language, sidelining Tamil," he said. The Centre, while issuing advertisements, should take adequate care to ensure that the feelings of Tamils were not hurt.

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