Tamil Nadu: In a bold move against the National Education Policy (NEP), the MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government replaced the official rupee symbol (₹) with a Tamil character in the state's 2025 Budget.
This unprecedented step marks the first instance of a state rejecting the national currency symbol, intensifying its opposition to the NEP.
Why Was the Rupee Symbol Replaced?
According to a report by News18, DMK leader Saravanan Annadurai defended the Tamil Nadu government's decision, stating, "We have used the Tamil word for Rupees. This is not a confrontation, nor is it illegal. Prioritising Tamil is our goal, which is why the government proceeded with this move."
Highlighting the state's achievements in education, he remarked, "I only urged them to properly promote Tamil. Tamil Nadu consistently excels in education—our people are not migrating to North India but to the US and UK. The BJP cannot accept this success."
"The nation should take pride in the fact that a Tamil Nadu native created this. This is not about who designed it but about promoting Tamil, and there is no law preventing us from doing so," he further told the publication.
Annadurai emphasized that the designer of the symbol is Tamil and credited Tamilians for driving significant achievements.
According to the ministry, the logo change is limited to the state budget documents and does not impact the currency.
BJP Criticises Replacement of Rupee Symbol
Meanwhile, the BJP criticized the Tamil Nadu government's decision to replace the rupee symbol in the budget, calling it a foolish move.
As per reports, BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan dismissed the state government's move as political theatrics, stating that while she supports the use of Tamil, the DMK is exploiting it for their agenda. She further questioned why DMK leaders do not enroll their children in government schools if they truly prioritize Tamil.
Tamil Nadu BJP Chief Annamalai also criticised the decision as a misguided move by Stalin, accusing the DMK of fueling a language war. He pointed out that the symbol’s designer, Kumar, is the son of a DMK MLA and asserted that the DMK cannot claim sole authority over the Tamil language.
