Amit Shah targets DMK, says some people using language as cover to "hide their scams"

New Delhi [India], March 22 : Hitting out at DMK over its opposition to the three-language formula, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said no attempt should be made to divide the nation on the basis of language and "some people are using language as a cover to hide their scams and corruption".
Amit Shah, who was replying to the debate in the Rajya Sabha on the working of his ministry, said the Tamil Nadu government "does not have the courage" to translate medical and engineering study material into Tamil.
"I would like to say something so that those who divide the country in the name of language do not get their agenda. Under the Department of Official Languages, Narendra Modi government has set up Indian Languages Section which will work to enhance the use of all Indian languages - Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Assamese, Bengali, all languages. After December, I will have written correspondence with citizens, CMs, Ministers and MPs in their own language," Amit Shah said.
Without naming DMK, he accused it of using language issue to hide scams.
"This is a strong reply to those who run their shops in the name of language to hide their corruption...What are they saying? That we oppose languages of the south? How can this be possible?...I come from Guajrat, Nirmala Sitharanan from Tamil Nadu. How can we oppose this? What are you saying?" he said.
Amit Shah said when an NDA government comes to power in Tamil Nadu, it will provide medical and engineering course in Tamil.
"We have worked for languages...I would like to tell Tamil Nadu Government - we have been saying for two years that you do not have the courage to translate medical and engineering study material into Tamil...You cannot do this. When an NDA government comes to power (in Tamil Nadu), we will provide medical and engineering course in Tamil, in Tamil Nadu," he said.
The Home Minister said that Hindi has no competition with any other Indian language and is a friend of all Indian languages.
"I would like to tell those who spread poison in the name of language that you like languages from thousands of kilometres away but you do not language of India...I have said this again and again Hindi has no competition with any other Indian language. Hindi is a friend of all Indian languages, all Indian languages strengthen from Hindi and Hindi strengthens from all Indian languages," he said.
He also said that the BJP will expose DMK's "wrongdoings" by visiting every village and engaging with the public.
There has been a stalemate between the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government over the implementation of the three-language formula as part of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
Union Home Minister said that the Inter-State Council operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs and works to resolve issues between the center and the states.
Between 2004 and 2014, only 11 meetings of the Zonal Council were held, but since 2014, 27 meetings have taken place. The Standing Committee had 14 meetings between 2004 and 2014, but since 2014, 33 meetings have been held. In the past, only 448 issues were resolved in the Zonal Council meetings, but during our government, 1280 issues have been resolved. He said that the Inter-State Council is an important tool in strengthening our federal structure.
Amit Shah said that the Vibrant Village Programme is important initiative. There has been migration from villages located in difficult conditions on the country's borders in search of better facilities, and a country whose border villages are empty can never be safe. Earlier, the villages located on the borders were called the "last villages," but due to the new approach of the Modi government, these are now called the "first villages." In the next few years, these villages will also become the first in terms of facilities, and this is the aim of the Vibrant Village Programme. Under this programme, 90 per cent of the funding is from the central government, and 10 per cent from the state government. In the first phase, 455 villages from Arunachal Pradesh, 75 from Himachal Pradesh, 51 from Uttarakhand, 46 from Sikkim, and 35 from Ladakh have been adopted under this programme.
The Union Home Minister said that many efforts have been made for border security. He mentioned that "out of the total 12 Land Ports, 11 have been established during our time, and through these Land Ports, trade worth Rs70,959 crore and the movement of over 30 million passengers have taken place".
Amit Shah further stated that the government has plans for a total of 26 Land Ports.
He said that the Padma Awards have been given to people who were heroes to ordinary citizens and dedicated their entire lives to bringing small changes in society and the country.