Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Sunday defended his government’s decision to replace the rupee symbol (‘₹’) with ‘Ru’ in the state budget for 2025-26, asserting it was a demonstration of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)’s commitment to the Tamil language. The move has sparked a political row, with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman calling it a “secessionist sentiment.”
Addressing the controversy in his regular “Ungalil Oruvan” (One Among You) video series, Stalin said, “We had put ‘Ru’ in the budget logo to show our commitment to the language policy. But those who don’t like Tamil have made it big news.” He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government of attempting to impose Hindi through the National Education Policy (NEP) and vowed to resist any such efforts.
Centre vs Tamil Nadu Over Language Issue
The Tamil Nadu government’s decision to use ‘Ru’—derived from Rubaai, the Tamil equivalent of rupee—has reignited the state’s long-standing opposition to Hindi imposition. Finance Minister Sitharaman criticized the move, saying it fosters separatism. However, Stalin countered by pointing out that even the Union minister had used ‘Ru’ in some contexts.
“In English, Rupees is written simply as Rs. That doesn’t matter to them, but this seems to be an issue for them,” he remarked.
Stalin also took a dig at Sitharaman for ignoring Tamil Nadu’s financial demands while finding time to comment on the rupee symbol controversy. He said the state had repeatedly sought funds for MGNREGA, disaster relief, and education but had received no response from the Centre.
Stalin Warns of ‘Language War’ Over Hindi Imposition
Reiterating Tamil Nadu’s opposition to the NEP and the three-language policy, Stalin warned that his government would launch a “language war” if the Centre imposed Hindi on the state. He also accused the BJP of planning to reduce Tamil Nadu’s Lok Sabha seats through delimitation, which he claimed was a deliberate attempt to weaken the state’s political representation.
With the issue escalating into a larger political battle, Tamil Nadu remains firm in its stance against Hindi imposition, while the BJP government at the Centre continues to push for a uniform education policy. The rupee symbol controversy has further widened the divide between the state and the Centre, setting the stage for a heated political showdown in the coming months.