Nirmala Sitharaman slams MK Stalin's DMK over 'Rs' move: 'Promotes secessionist sentiment'

The Tamil Nadu government has replaced the Indian rupee symbol with a Tamil letter in its logo for the 2025-26 budget, to be tabled in the Assembly on Friday.

Updated on: Mar 13, 2025, 23:59:26 IST

By HT News Desk

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Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday slammed the Tamil Nadu government's move to replace the rupee symbol.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman asked why didn’t the DMK protest back in 2010 when the rupee symbol was officially adopted under the Congress -led UPA government (Sanchit Khanna/ Hindustan Times)

“If the DMK (@arivalayam) has a problem with ‘ ₹’, why didn’t it protest back in 2010 when it was officially adopted under the @INCIndia -led UPA government, at a time when the DMK was part of the ruling alliance at the Centre? Ironically, ‘ ₹’ was designed by Th. D Udaya Kumar, the son of former DMK MLA N. Dharmalingam. By erasing it now, the DMK is not only rejecting a national symbol but also utterly disregarding the creative contribution of a Tamil youth,” Sitharaman said in an X post.

The Tamil government has replaced the Indian rupee symbol with a Tamil letter in its logo for the 2025-26 budget, to be tabled in the Assembly on Friday.

The logo for the budget, released by the government on Thursday carried 'Ru', the first letter of the Tamil word 'Rubaai', which denotes the Indian currency in the vernacular language.

ALSO READ: ‘How stupid can you become MK Stalin’: BJP's K Annamalai slams Tamil Nadu's 'Rs' move

“All elected representatives and authorities are sworn under the Constitution to uphold the sovereignty and integrity of our nation. Removing a national symbol like ' ₹' from the State Budget documents goes against that very oath, weakening the commitment to national unity,” Sitharaman added.

Continuing her attack, the finance minister said,"This is more than mere symbolism—it signals a dangerous mindset that weakens Indian unity and promotes secessionist sentiments under the pretence of regional pride. A completely avoidable example of language and regional chauvinism."

Rupee symbol move amid DMK vs Centre language showdown

The development comes amidst the language row between the Centre and Tamil Nadu.

The ruling DMK and other major political parties in the state, barring the BJP have been alleging Hindi imposition by the Union government.

ALSO READ: ‘Saffron policy’: Stalin claims NEP will destroy Tamil Nadu's educational growth

The DMK has alleged that the Centre wants to 'impose' the north Indian language on Tamil Nadu through the implementation of the 3-language formula in the National Education Policy.

The state government has said it will not follow the 3-language formula but only stick to its decades-old 2-language policy of Tamil and English.

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