Hindi Will Make Us Shudras, DMK MP Elangovan's Casteist Slur Stirs Controversy

DMK MP Elangovan soon started to receive flak since he used a casteist slur to attack Hindi language.

Chennai: DMK MP T.K.S Elangovan ran into a controversy on Monday after he said that Hindi is the language of underdeveloped states and imposing the language in Tamil Nadu will only make the people 'Shudras'. The MP soon started to receive flak since he used casteist slur to attack Hindi language.

'Shudras' is the term used to denote the so-called lower rung in the caste hierarchy.

During an event organised by Dravidar Kazhagam on the language imposition issue, Elangovan said, "Attempts are made to impose Manu dharma through the imposition of Hindi." 

"What will Hindi do? Only make us shudras. It will do no benefit to us," he said, as per a report on PTI. 

Further, Elangovan asked if non-Hindi speaking states including West Bengal, Odisha, Telangana, AP, TN, Kerala, Maharashtra and Gujarat were developed or not and went on to say that the undeveloped states are the Hindi-speaking ones like Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan. He also asked why we all should learn Hindi.

After the statement, Tamil Nadu BJP chief Annamalai taking to Twitter said, ".@Arivalayam party MP TKS Elangovan says that Hindi is the language of underdeveloped states & adopting it would make people a Shudra. "

"DMK was always & will be a casteist party. They’ll never think beyond that," he said.

Political Commentator Kasturi Shankar said, "Does Tiru Elangovan believe Shudras are inferior? Reminds me of Dayanidhi Maran's 'are we dalit' moment."

"Hindi, English Tamil or Sanskrit, any language has nothing to do with caste or creed. It is DK DMK's dravidian model that brings caste into everything to divide and rule," she said.

Earlier, TN Education Minister Ponmudi also stirred controversy and said that the job prospects for Hindi speakers were weak in Tamil Nadu since most of them sold pani puris and did menial jobs.

Meanwhile, multiple groups earlier staged protests in Tamil Nadu against the statement of Union Home Minister Amit Shah that Hindi should be used as an alternative to English and not regional languages while addressing 37th meeting of Parliamentary Official Language commitee in New Delhi.