Tamil Nadu's Language Rights Revolution
Note = This post gives a basic overview based on available information and is not a complete analysis. Readers are encouraged to explore additional sources to understand the topic better.
Synopsis
- Introduction
- The Anti-Hindi Agitation Movement
- The First Anti-Hindi Agitation
- The Second Anti-Hindi Agitation
- The 15-Year Deadline
- Nehru's Assurances
- May or Shall?
- The Third Anti-Hindi Agitation
- Periyar's Position
- The Anti-Hindi Agitation and the 1967 Change of Power
- The Central Government's New Amendment
- The Two-Language Policy Resolution
- Why Is the Two-Language Policy Not a Law?
- Annadurai Still Governs
- Tamil Nadu's Exemption Under the 1976 Rules
- The Fourth Anti-Hindi Agitation
- How the Struggle and Politics Evolved
- Conclusion
- References
Introduction
The fundamental aim of "Tamil Nadu's Language Rights Revolution" is the protection of Tamil, the mother tongue of the Tamil people. Tamil is a language with a long and distinguished history. Hindi, as a language, does not have the inherent strength to pose a direct threat to Tamil; however, the Central Government does. And it is through that institutional power that Hindi is being imposed upon all states.
Behind the Central Government's Hindi imposition lies Sanskrit; and behind Sanskrit lies Sanatana Dharma. It is with this understanding that Tamil Nadu has consistently and comprehensively resisted Hindi.
The Anti-Hindi Agitation Movement
The Anti-Hindi Agitation is one of the most significant chapters in Tamil Nadu's history. From 1937 onwards, across various periods, leaders of the Dravidian movement, including the Dravidar Kazhagam, the DMK, and those who emerged from these organisations, joined hands with students, youth, and the general public to fight for the Tamil language. It would not be an exaggeration to say that this struggle, which began as a sentiment to protect Tamil, gradually grew into a broader political demand asserting state rights and the principles of federalism.
Among the DMK's five great slogans, the one that stands out most prominently is "We shall oppose Hindi imposition forever; Federalism at the Centre, Autonomy in the States." This slogan, which has left a deep imprint on Tamil Nadu's politics, continues to resonate with vitality, from the era of Kalaignar, through M.K. Stalin, and onward to Udhayanidhi Stalin. It is an undeniable truth that, owing to the relentless resistance of our language warriors against Hindi imposition, Tamil today holds a distinctive place across many fields.
The First Anti-Hindi Agitation
Even before the Indian Constitution came into force on 26th January 1950, Chief Minister Rajaji, on behalf of the Congress government then ruling the Madras Presidency, announced on 11th August 1937 that Hindi would be made a compulsory subject in schools. Despite protests from leaders including Periyar, a Government Order was issued on 21st April 1938, and compulsory Hindi education was introduced in 125 high schools.
With the Dravidian movement and the Pure Tamil movement providing direction, leaders including Periyar, Anna, Maraimalai Adigal, and Meenambaal Sivaraj raised their voices in opposition; students too joined the agitation. Anna served as the field commander of Periyar's forces. During those protests, a Class 7 student raised the slogan, "O Hindi woman who came running, hear me! This is not the land of cowards you sought!" That student was none other than Kalaignar, who would later become a celebrated political leader. From 1937 to 1940, the agitations were carried forward in various forms and over different periods. In all, 1,198 people were arrested; two young men, Natarajan and Kalimuthu, lost their lives in police custody.
When the British Indian Government compelled Indians to participate in the Second World War, the Congress passed a resolution to resign from office in protest. Following this, Rajaji stepped down as Chief Minister of the Madras Presidency on 29th October 1939. Subsequently, in February 1940, Governor Erskine withdrew the Government Order relating to compulsory Hindi education.
The Second Anti-Hindi Agitation
On 20th June 1948, the Congress government of independent India's Madras Presidency, led by Chief Minister Omandur Ramasamy, once again issued an order making Hindi education compulsory. The newly independent Central Congress government was pressing all states to implement Hindi. In response, a fresh agitation was launched in the Madras Presidency under the leadership of Periyar and Anna. The matter was finally resolved on 26th December 1948 through a compromise; the compulsory Hindi curriculum was scrapped and reclassified as an optional subject.
The 15-Year Deadline
When the Indian Constitution came into force on 26th January 1950, Prime Minister Nehru gave his assurance under Article 343 that Hindi would serve as the Union's official language while English would continue as a co-official language for a period of 15 years, until 26th January 1965.
Nehru's Assurances
// Frank Anthony - Nehru //
In 1959, Frank Anthony, the Anglo-Indian nominated member, introduced a resolution in Parliament to include English in the Eighth Schedule. However, Prime Minister Nehru advised against pursuing the resolution further, noting that English already enjoyed constitutional protection. He pointed out that his own position was not opposed to English, but that the resolution could stir unnecessary controversy and linguistic tensions.
In the same parliamentary debate on 7th August 1959, Nehru reaffirmed that English would continue to be used in official capacity and emphasised that English was essential for connecting India with the modern world and its scientific advancements. He firmly stated that Hindi would not be imposed, thereby allaying the anxieties prevailing in non-Hindi-speaking regions.
// E.V.K. Sampath - Nehru //
In April 1960, President Rajendra Prasad issued a directive suggesting that Hindi would become India's sole official language. This triggered an Anti-Hindi Agitation under the leadership of the Dravidar Kazhagam and the DMK.
E.V.K. Sampath, the head of the DMK's agitation committee, wrote to Nehru, reminding him of his earlier assurance that Hindi would not be imposed on those who did not wish to use it. In his reply, Nehru once again affirmed "Hindi will not be imposed on anyone." Similarly, President Rajendra Prasad, while addressing the Hindi Prachar Sabha in Hyderabad, assured "The sentiments of those who do not speak Hindi will not be disregarded; Hindi will not be imposed on anyone." Having secured these assurances from both the Prime Minister and the President, the DMK called off its planned agitation.
May or Shall?
The Official Languages Act, 1963, was passed in Parliament by the Congress government on 10th May 1963. Section 3 of the Act stated "English language may continue to be used in addition to Hindi."
Scholar-parliamentarian Arignar Anna of the DMK strongly argued that the word "may" in the Act must be replaced with "shall". The word "may", he explained, implies that English could continue, meaning a future government, if it chose, could discontinue it altogether. The word "shall", on the other hand, would make continuation mandatory and non-discretionary.
However, with the overwhelming majority of the Central Congress government, the Act was passed without any such change. Prime Minister Nehru, at the time, assured Parliament that "may" and "shall" amounted to the same thing.
The Third Anti-Hindi Agitation
Since the Official Languages Act of 1963 provided no permanent guarantee for the continuation of English, fears spread across Tamil Nadu that Hindi would be fully imposed in competitive examinations, education, and official communications. Against this backdrop, on 25th January 1964, Keezhappazhuvur Chinnasamy of Tiruchirappalli set himself ablaze while raising the slogan "Long live Tamil! Down with Hindi!" and lost his life.
Meanwhile, following the death of Prime Minister Nehru on 27th May 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri, who assumed office as Prime Minister, made moves to prioritise Hindi. As the 15-year period stipulated under Article 343 of the Constitution was drawing to a close, fears mounted that from 26th January 1965, the Central Government could remove English and make Hindi the sole official language. This intensified the anti-Hindi agitations across Tamil Nadu.
Anna called for Republic Day, 26th January 1965, to be observed as a day of mourning. At the same time, students across the state plunged into protests against the Central Government's language policy. Chief Minister Bhaktavatsalam warned that the government would not tolerate any disrespect to Republic Day, and that stern action would be taken against students who participated in political activities.
Although the DMK shifted the day of mourning to 25th January in the interest of public order, Anna and some 3,000 DMK workers were still arrested. On the same day, students marching in a procession in Madurai to publicly burn Part XVII of the Constitution were subjected to a severe police lathi-charge. The brutal crackdown inflamed the student agitation, which then spread across the entire state.
Student leaders including Pe.Seenivasan, Ka.Kalimuthu, Na.Kamarasan, Ravichandran, Tiruppur Su.Duraisamy, Shedapatti Muthaiah, Duraimurugan, Raja Mohamed, Navalavan, M.Natarajan, and L.Ganesan organised and led the anti-Hindi imposition movement in various towns and cities. In particular, students demanded amendments to Part XVII of the Indian Constitution (Articles 343 to 351), which deals with the official language, and pressed for Tamil too to be recognised as an official language.
Under the Congress government led by Chief Minister Bhaktavatsalam, the student protests were brutally suppressed through police firing; for the first time in Tamil Nadu's history, the army was also deployed. Annamalai University student Rajendran lost his life in the police firing; several others were killed in Pollachi and other areas. In his book Anti-Hindi Agitation History, Professor A. Ramasamy, who participated in the agitation, records that in Pollachi, police shot and killed an elderly man, the bullet passing through his body and killing a child who had taken shelter behind him. While the official government figures put the death toll of the 1965 Anti-Hindi Agitation at 70, the actual number may have been as high as 300.
Following the DMK's sustained opposition and the students' agitation, and at the insistence of President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri announced on 11th February 1965 that there would be no compulsory imposition of Hindi, and that Nehru's assurances would be honoured. On this basis, the agitation came to an end.
Periyar's Position
In the 1963 by-election at Thiruvannamalai, DMK candidate P.U. Shanmugam's victory came as a considerable shock to Chief Minister Kamarajar. Around the same period, Prime Minister Nehru too suffered political setbacks in the wake of the Sino-Indian War. This gave rise to an anti-Congress wave across the country.
With the aim of reversing this trend and reinvigorating the Congress, Kamarajar put forward to Nehru a reorganisation plan, later called the Kamarajar Plan, under which Congress Chief Ministers and senior leaders would resign from their positions and devote themselves to party work. This plan, however, ultimately proved to be a political setback for Kamarajar himself.
Periyar had praised Kamarajar as a "pure Tamil man" and extended his support to him. Compared to Rajaji's administration, which had entrenched Brahminical dominance, Periyar believed that Kamarajar, as someone who understood the sufferings of the Shudra communities, would govern in a manner more beneficial to the common people and would contribute to Tamil Nadu's prosperity. It was therefore in the interest of the Tamil people's welfare and the advancement of the anti-caste movement that Periyar supported the Kamarajar government.
When Kamarajar unexpectedly resigned through the Kamarajar Plan, Periyar was not accepting of the development. Later, during the 1965 Anti-Hindi Agitation that took place under Chief Minister Bhaktavatsalam's rule, Periyar issued a statement condemning the violence that erupted. It is important to note, however, that Periyar remained firm in his fundamental stance against Hindi imposition throughout.
The Anti-Hindi Agitation and the 1967 Change of Power
Kalaignar, who had been arrested in Chennai under the National Security Act for his participation in the anti-Hindi agitation, was kept in solitary confinement in Palayamkottai Prison for approximately 62 days. In the meantime, the Congress accused Anna of directing the student agitation from behind the scenes.
The repressive measures the Congress government took against the protesters of the 1965 anti-Hindi agitation stirred considerable public anger and deepened Tamil linguistic sentiment significantly. Rather than addressing administrative failures and the rice shortage, the Congress government prioritised suppressing the student protests. The DMK's policies, which positioned it as a movement working to improve the lives of Tamil people, greatly attracted the public and students alike.
As a result, the DMK swept to power in the 1967 elections and Anna became Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. In addition, through the political contribution of the DMK's younger generation, not only was Congress defeated at the polls, but in Virudhunagar, student leader Pe. Seenivasan defeated Congress leader Kamarajar himself. In short, the rice shortage, administrative disorder, and the brutal suppression of the language agitation together brought the Congress rule in Tamil Nadu to an end.
The Central Government's New Amendment
In order to ease tensions prevailing in non-Hindi-speaking states, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, on 8th January 1968, gave statutory assurance through the Official Languages (Amendment) Act, 1967, that English would continue to be used alongside Hindi permanently. That is, Section 3 of the Official Languages Act, 1963 was amended to guarantee, without any time limit, the continuation of English, an assurance that remains in force to this day.
The Two-Language Policy Resolution
Although the continuation of English had been confirmed, on 18th January 1968, the Official Language Resolution, 1968 was passed in Parliament. Based on this resolution, the Three-Language Formula, promoting Hindi, English, and one other Indian language, was recommended. In direct opposition to this parliamentary resolution, on 23rd January 1968, Anna led the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly in passing a resolution affirming that only the Two-Language Policy (Tamil and English) would be followed in the state.
Note = Building on the recommendations of the Kothari Education Commission (1964-1966), the Central Congress government announced a new National Education Policy on 24th July 1968, projecting the Three-Language Formula (English, mother tongue, and one other Indian language). It is noteworthy, however, that Tamil Nadu consistently rejected Hindi, which was effectively being ushered in through the back door under the guise of the Three-Language Formula, and steadfastly adhered to the Two-Language Policy.
Why Is the Two-Language Policy Not a Law?
Three major measures were taken during Anna's rule. They were,
1. Legal recognition for self-respect marriages (Hindu Marriage (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 1967)
2. Act to change the name of the state to Tamil Nadu (Madras State (Alteration of Name) Act, 1968)
3. Resolution emphasizing the two-language policy (not as a law) (Two-language was adopted as a Policy and not as a Law)
Self-Respect Marriages got a law. "Tamil Nadu" as a name got a law. But the Two-Language Policy, the very heartbeat of Tamil Nadu, got only a resolution, not a law. The reason is this; the State Legislature can pass resolutions that stand in contradiction to the Centre's Three-Language Formula, but it cannot enact laws to that effect.
Moreover, any law enacted by a State Legislature in conflict with a policy of the Union Parliament would require the assent of the President, who is effectively a functionary of the Central Government, and such assent would almost certainly not be forthcoming. In addition, this would create serious complications for the state administration itself. It was therefore after carefully examining the legal nuances that Anna passed the Two-Language Policy as a resolution in the State Assembly, countering the Three-Language Formula brought by Parliament, while staying within the bounds of constitutional possibility.
Annadurai Still Governs
To this day, the Two-Language Policy resolution in Tamil Nadu cannot be converted into law. At the same time, no government that came to power after Anna has been able to repeal it either. The sole reason for this is, as Anna himself put it, "Annadurai is the one who governs this country."
Here is what Anna said in his own characteristic style: "One year ago, I came to power. In this one year, I have done three important things. One, legal recognition for self-respect marriages. Two, changing the name of our motherland to Tamil Nadu. Three, announcement that Hindi has no place in Tamil Nadu and the two-language policy of Tamil and English. Seeing this, many people become angry and furious. Should we let them be? They think the government should be dissolved. I won't challenge whether you can do it. You can. But along with dissolving it and having someone else come and sit here thinking they should change all these things that Annadurai brought, will immediately come the fear that the people will rise in fury. As long as that fear exists, it means Annadurai governs this land. For as long as that fear exists, whether in power or not, it means Annadurai governs this land," These words, spoken by Anna in the Legislative Assembly, are nothing short of historic.
Tamil Nadu's Exemption Under the 1976 Rules
Due to the sustained pressure from the DMK, the Central Government framed the Official Language Rules, 1976, specifically exempting Tamil Nadu.
Under Rule 1(2), it was explicitly stated "They shall extend to the whole of India, except the State of Tamil Nadu." Through this provision, the Two-Language Policy of Tamil Nadu acquired a legal backing. It also became firmly established that the Hindi-English bilingual rules prevailing in Central Government offices would not apply to Tamil Nadu.
The Fourth Anti-Hindi Agitation
In 1986, the Central Congress government introduced a new National Education Policy. Under this policy, it was recommended that Navodaya Vidyalaya residential schools, offering education under the Three-Language Formula and aimed at improving the educational opportunities of poor rural students, be established across the country. The DMK warned that the real danger was that these Navodaya schools would be used as instruments for the compulsory imposition of Hindi.
On 17th November 1986, DMK members publicly burned Part XVII of the Constitution in protest against the new National Education Policy. In response to this agitation, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi assured them that Hindi would not be imposed. As part of the resulting compromise, Navodaya Schools were not opened in Tamil Nadu. It is worth noting that Tamil Nadu remains to this day the only state in India without Navodaya Schools.
The 1986 anti-Hindi agitation once again awakened the Tamil language consciousness in Tamil Nadu. DMK members, students, youth, and people from various walks of life took to the streets. It is significant that the historic struggles of 1938 and 1965 found new life and energy in 1986.
Note = The Kendriya Vidyalaya's, established in 1963 primarily to provide education to the children of frequently transferred Central Government employees, are fundamentally different in their language policy and operational objectives from the Navodaya Vidyalaya's.
How the Struggle and Politics Evolved
In the 1950s and 1960s, securing a government job was considered a primary aspiration for students. During that period, Hindi imposition was perceived as a direct threat to employment prospects. This caused protests to erupt across the land, drawing in students, youth, and large sections of the public. As the intensity of the agitation escalated, lives were lost. That era stands as a defining phase in which language and livelihood became politically inseparable in Tamil Nadu.
Today, owing to the promotion of English education under successive Dravidian movement governments, multinational employment opportunities have expanded and Tamils' global connections have grown considerably. As a result, language is no longer intertwined with employment urgency the way it once was; it has now shifted to the dimension of a sense of identity. Similarly, the forms of political resistance have evolved with the times; the street protests of yesteryear have transformed into campaigns on social media.
In parallel, the Tamil Nadu government's approach has adapted accordingly. For instance, recognising that Tamil students' participation in UPSC examinations conducted by the Central Government was relatively low, the Tamil Nadu government under Chief Minister M.K. Stalin introduced the Naan Mudhalvan scheme, through which students receive coaching and financial assistance for UPSC competitive examinations. This initiative is creating greater opportunities for Tamil Nadu's students to occupy positions in Union-level administrative services.
Conclusion
Tamil Nadu's history of anti-Hindi agitation is not merely a language struggle; it is a broad cultural and political movement encompassing state rights, federal principles, cultural identity, and economic opportunity.
From 1937 to the present day, from street protests to social media campaigns, Tamil Nadu has continuously fought to protect its language rights. Even as the ambiguities surrounding "May" versus "Shall" and the unresolved questions around Part XVII of the Constitution remain inadequately addressed, this long and continuing language struggle may not yet have reached its conclusion. What remains essential, above all, is that the protection of our language depends entirely on our own vigilance and awareness.
References
1937, 1948, 1965, 1986 = Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu
1950 = Article 343(2) in Constitution of India
Part XVII = Official Language (343 to 351)
1959 = Nehru's Response to Frank Anthony's Resolution
1960 = Letters Exchanged Between E.V.K.Sampath & Nehru
1963 = Official Languages Act, 1963
1967 = Official Languages Act, 1963 (As Amended, 1967)
1968 = Official Language Resolution, 1968
1968 = Annadurai's Resolution on the Two-Language Policy
1976 = Official Language Rules, 1976
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