NEW DELHI: The Centre had written to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin last month seeking his support and participation in the ongoing Kashi Tamil Sangamam, but has not received a response yet, Union Education Ministry sources said on Monday.

The Stalin-led DMK as well as Tamil experts have alleged that the Tamil Nadu government has not been involved in the month-long Kashi Tamil Sangamam (KTS) underway in Varanasi. The KTS, which has been organised by the Union Education Ministry, is aimed at rediscovering historical links between Kashi (Varanasi) in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and the two institutional partners for it are IIT-Madras and the Banaras Hindu University.

“The Ministry had written to the state government with the details of the event which also sought support from the Tamil Nadu government as a stakeholder. However, the Ministry till date didn’t receive any response,” a source in the Union Education Ministry said.

DMK spokesperson V Kannadasan criticised the Centre for neither consulting nor inviting the Tamil Nadu government and Tamil scholars. The Ministry was also criticised for involving IIT-Madras as the event coordinator in the state, alleging that the technical institution has no connection to the promotion of Tamil and Tamil literature.

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