Bharati’s couplet attributed to Madan Mohan Malvaiya at Ooty station, DMK's Raja flays Railways

CHENNAI: Reiterating that the imposition of Hindi is unacceptable, Chief Whip of the DMK parliamentary party A. Raja on Sunday wrote to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw objecting to the increasing use and prominence of Hindi at railway stations and said that it is an issue that has sparked widespread attention and protest. He further stated that Tamil Nadu would "never and ever" accept the imposition of Hindi, and demanded the immediate removal of Hindi banners displayed at railway stations in his constituency, The Nilgiris.

"In my constituency, the Nilgiris, Udhagamandalam railway station is more than 100 years old. Under the Amrit Bharat Scheme, renovation work at the station is currently underway. Although only 90% of the work has been completed, banners have already been put up on the walls, which have hurt the sentiments of the people of TN," Raja wrote in his letter to the Minister.

Calling the recent developments at Udhagamandalam railway station as an act of linguistic imposition, the DMK MP said, "Promoting Hindi in public spaces feels disconnected from the linguistic needs of the local population and is perceived as a political assertion."

Raja also pointed out an error in one of the banners, where the Tamil poet Mahakavi Bharathi quote - “Let us bring various literary forms and noble thoughts from all over the world” - was wrongly attributed to freedom fighter and scholar Madan Mohan Malaviya. He urged the Minister to “respect the linguistic sentiments” of the people of TN and to refrain from the unwarranted inclusion of Hindi in places where it is not necessary.

He further requested the Minister to instruct officials to remove the banners that have been put up solely in Hindi.