Coimbatore (TN), April 11 (PTI): Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K S Alagiri on Monday accused Home Minister Amit Shah of attempting to divide the nation by imposing Hindi as an alternative language to English.
Speaking after flagging off a 550-km padayatra here by TNCC Human Rights cell protesting the increase in prices of petroleum products, Alagiri alleged Shah statement was an effort to divide the country on the basis of language, which was dangerous.
Former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, despite having total support of the Hindu speaking population, decided to make English as the official language, he said.
Shah had last week said Hindi should be accepted as an alternative to English and not to local languages.
Presiding over the 37th meeting of the Parliamentary Official Language Committee, Shah had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided that the medium of running the government is the official language and this will definitely increase the importance of Hindi.
On the padayatra seeking to bring petroleum products under the ambit of Goods and Services Tax (GST) and reduce the rising prices of cooking gas, Alagiri said BJP, then in the opposition opposed when the Congress introduced GST with minimum taxes and is now taxing 18 per cent and above for various products, which had affected all sections of society.
The 18-day padayatra undertaken by 56 party workers who are part of the Human Rights cell will cover 550-km in various districts and reach Chennai on April 28.