Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 4 (ANI): The three-language policy set to be introduced by CBSE has sparked a political debate in Tamil Nadu, as former BJP state president K Annamalai on Saturday strongly criticised Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin over his critique of the new curriculum framework.

In a post on X, the BJP leader accused the Chief Minister of having a 'habit' of raising complaints against 'something that is not even remotely close to the Central Government's intentions,' suggesting that his statement stems from political gain.

Annamalai highlighted that the CBSE curriculum for 2026-27 mandates that two of the three languages taught from Grade 6 must be native to India, with options including those listed in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution.

The policy requires students to learn an additional language, with at least two of the three being Indian languages.

'To clarify the languages to be offered, it is mentioned that all scheduled languages listed in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution of India are being offered, in addition to other Indian regional languages,' said Annamalai, further questioning the reasoning for Stalin's disdain, asking, 'Where is the question of the imposition of Hindi in this?'

Referring to CBSE's particular emphasis on using the mother tongue or home language as the medium of instruction during the Foundational and Preparatory Stages of schooling, he urged Stalin to verify the language implementation at his daughter's school. 'He could also simultaneously check with his Ministers and key DMK functionaries who run CBSE schools across Tamil Nadu,' he added.

Concluding his post, Annamalai remarked that the Chief Minister's narratives against the Centre are increasingly failing, stating, 'Thiru @mkstalin, one almost misses the days when your misguided narratives required at least some effort to unravel. Now, they seem to collapse under the lightest scrutiny'

His sharp critique comes after CM Stalin described the new CBSE policy as a 'calculated attempt at linguistic imposition', favouring Hindi over regional languages.

CM Stalin said the policy undermines federalism, marginalises non-Hindi-speaking states and places an undue burden on students and teachers, urging the Union government to respect India's linguistic diversity and protect the rights of students across states.

In a post on X, CM Stalin wrote, 'The recently unveiled curriculum framework by the Central Board of Secondary Education, aligned with the National Education Policy 2020, is not an innocent academic reform--it is a calculated and deeply concerning attempt at linguistic imposition that vindicates our long-standing apprehensions. Under the guise of promoting 'Indian languages,' the BJP-led NDA government is aggressively advancing a centralising agenda that privileges Hindi while systematically marginalising India's rich and diverse linguistic heritage. The so-called three-language formula is, in reality, a covert mechanism to expand Hindi into non-Hindi-speaking regions.'

The chief minister criticised the Union government's curriculum framework, saying it structurally privileges Hindi-speaking students and undermines fairness, federalism and regional equality.

He warned that such policies threaten India's linguistic diversity and called on the AIADMK and its NDA allies in Tamil Nadu to stand up for students' rights and regional identity. (ANI)