There is no language barrier, vested interests creating it: Pradhan at Kashi Tamil Sangamam

“Every year I write a letter to the honourable Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu… Please come to the inaugural programme of Kashi Tamil Sangamam. You personally see how my young friends of Tamil Nadu are celebrating civilisation. Civilisation has no boundary. The spirituality, the cultural aspect, the song, food, textile, agriculture, knowledge exchange… the software part of this exchange is language,” Pradhan said.

Speaking at the event, Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs L Murugan said owing to politics in Tamil Nadu, he was unable to learn Hindi, and whatever Hindi he learnt, it was after he came to Delhi. He said learning Hindi is his right. “Why am I being denied the opportunity to learn Hindi? I will learn Hindi, it is my right. But, there are no opportunities there (Tamil Nadu),” Murugan said. The minister said he would not speak about politics from this stage.

The Education Ministry has chosen ‘Tamil Karkalam’ or ‘Learn Tamil’ as the central theme of this year’s Kashi Tamil Sangamam amid the ongoing standoff between Tamil Nadu and the Centre over the National Education Policy recommendation of three-language policy. Tamil Nadu has opposed the formula on the grounds that it “imposes” Hindi.

“Centuries ago, people visited Tamil Nadu, Rameswaram. Centuries ago, people of southern India, especially from Tamil Nadu, visited Kashi Vishwanath. There is no barrier of language. PM Narendra Modi categorically mentioned… like Sanskrit, Tamil is also the primary language of human civilisation. One of the ancient languages of human civilisation,” Pradhan said. “There is no barrier between languages…they can sense, they can talk, they can feel, they can interact with each other. Vested interests create barriers between them.”

Pradhan, who spoke mostly in English, also invoked key figures in Tamil Nadu – poet Bharathiyar and sage Agastya – to state that barriers cannot be created based on language.

“Great Bharathiyar came to this place (Varanasi). He learnt Sanskrit, he learnt Hindi, he learnt Bharatiya bhashas from this holy point, and he went back to Tamil Nadu… Last year, we put Rishi Agastya as our theme. Rishi Agastya went from Himalaya to Tamil Nadu. He is the pioneer of Tamil grammar and siddha medicine of Tamil Nadu. This is the oneness. You can’t create artificial barriers. You may succeed in your politics, but you cannot divide society,” he said.

In a video message, Vice-President C P Radhakrishnan said Tamil is receiving its rightful place of honour and continued national support. Welcoming this year’s theme, ‘Learn Tamil’, he said, it reinforces linguistic and cultural harmony. Describing the Sangamam as an embodiment of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’, Radhakrishnan observed that Kashi and Tamil Nadu stand as radiant lamps of India’s ancient civilisation, illuminating the nation with their cultural richness.

(With PTI inputs)