Tamil Nadu political parties united in opposing three-language policy

CUTTING across political divide, all major parties in Tamil Nadu slammed Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday for saying that Tamil Nadu would not be provided funds under Samagra Shiksha Abhiyaan till it accepts the National Education Policy (NEP) and the three-language formula.

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @Chennai

Tagging a video clip of Pradhan speaking to reporters in Varanasi on February 15, Chief Minister M K Stalin accused Pradhan of "blackmail" and challenged him to show the constitutional provision that mandates compliance with the three-language policy. "The state is seeking funds from the centre which is its rightful due and if the central minister speaks arrogantly, as if the state claimed his personal wealth, then Delhi may have to see the real trait of the Tamil people," the CM said. AIADMK, the main opposition party, Congress, NTK, PMK, DMDK and TVK, too, reacted strongly to the minister's statement.