Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday told Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin that it was inappropriate for his state to view the 2020 National Education Policy with a “myopic vision” and spin such reforms into threats to sustain their political narratives.

In a letter to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief, Pradhan said that the National Education Policy did not advocate for the imposition of any language and that several states without Bharatiya Janata Party governments had also implemented it despite political differences.

This came a day after Stalin wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention in getting dues of Rs 2,152 crore released to the Tamil Nadu under the Samagra Shiksha scheme without linking them to the implementation of the National Education Policy.

Samagra Shiksha, implemented in 2018, is the scheme through which the Centre provides support for elementary and secondary school education.

Stalin also accused the Centre of withholding funds as a tactic to coerce states to adopt centrally-mandated programmes. He said that the state had a two-language policy, which entailed teaching students English and Tamil.

Political parties in Tamil Nadu have long opposed attempts to impose Hindi as a third language.

Stalin was responding to earlier remarks made by Pradhan suggesting that funds under Samagra Shiksha for Tamil Nadu would not be released until the state implemented the National Education Policy in its entirety and adopted the three-language policy.

The three-language policy refers to teaching students English, Hindi and the native language of a state.

On Friday, Pradhan told Stalin that Tamil Nadu had always been a “torchbearer of social and educational progress, pioneering some of the most transformative reforms” in the country.

“However, the continued opposition to the NEP 2020 [National Education Policy] for political reasons deprives students, teachers, and educational institutions in Tamil Nadu of the immense opportunities and resources that this policy offers,” the BJP leader said in the letter.

The policy was designed to be flexible, which would allow states to customise its implementation to suit their unique educational needs, he added.

Pradhan also claimed that Stalin’s letter to the prime minister was a “complete negation of the spirit of cooperative federalism” promoted by the Modi government.

“Let me unequivocally state that there is no question of imposing any language on any state or community,” he claimed. “NEP 2020 upholds the principle of linguistic freedom and ensures that students continue to learn in the language of their choice.”

The BJP leader added that the three-language policy had been the backbone of India’s education framework since 1968. “Unfortunately, despite being part of successive education policies, it was never implemented in letter and spirit, leading to a decline in the systematic teaching of Indian languages in schools,” Pradhan said.

“Over time, this has resulted in an over-reliance on foreign languages, limiting students’ exposure to their linguistic roots,” he said. “NEP 2020 seeks to correct this historical oversight by ensuring that every Indian language, including Tamil, receives its rightful place in education.”

The BJP leader added: “I would, therefore, request you to rise above political differences and look into the matter holistically keeping in mind the interest of our young learners.”

The National Education Policy 2020 proposes major changes to the curricular structure for school education, claims to promote flexibility in choosing academic streams and emphasises on using the mother tongue as a key medium of instruction in primary school, among other measures.

The policy has been criticised by sections of the academic community, for encouraging the privatisation of public institutions. It was also criticised for creating numerous “exit” options for students, which opponents said would encourage dropouts.

The policy was also criticised for not being sufficiently inclusive of marginalised communities.