BJP accuses Rahul Gandhi of trying to create regional divide

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday (October 11, 2026) dismissed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s allegation that the Centre was attacking Tamil language, history, and culture as baseless, citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiatives to promote Tamil heritage in India and abroad.

On Saturday (October 10), in Chennai, Mr. Gandhi alleged that the government had launched a “full-scale attack” on Tamil culture, language, history, and traditions through language imposition and centralisation of entrance examinations like NEET.

Countering the charge, BJP MP and spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi cited the Prime Minister’s address to the UN General Assembly in September 2019, where Mr. Modi had highlighted the religious and literary aspects of Tamil culture and the language.

“The reality is that the Tamil language has been given full respect during Prime Minister Modi’s tenure…the sacred Sengol, a symbol of Tamil culture, was placed in the new Parliament building (2023). The Congress opposed it,” he said at a press conference.

Tamil heritage

Mr. Trivedi pointed out the return of Chola copper plates from The Hague on May 16, 2026; and the setting up of a Subramania Bharati Chair at Banaras Hindu University as other measures to promote Tamil heritage. “Rahul Gandhi is focused on how to foment divisiveness, while our aim is to uphold the actual unity of Indian culture. That is why the Kashi Tamil Sangamam and the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam programmes were initiated by the Prime Minister,” he said.

Mr. Trivedi said Mr. Modi had presented the Thirukkural, a celebrated work of Tamil literature, to Russian President Vladimir Putin during the latter’s visit to India last month. The government has announced plans to set up Thiruvalluvar Cultural Centres around the world, the first being in Singapore, he said, asking the Congress how many such initiatives were taken during its rule.

Besides, the Prime Minister announced the installation of statues of Raja Raja Chola and Rajendra Chola in July 2025. “All this shows our impartiality,” said the BJP leader, also recounting the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Mahabalipuram hosted by Mr. Modi in October 2019.

He said when the Modi government planned to strengthen indigenous capability of India’s defence sector, it had decided to develop two corridors: one in northern India, where Uttar Pradesh became the centre; and the other in southern India, in Tamil Nadu where the BJP was neither in the government nor in the Opposition.

Mr. Trivedi also referred to development projects worth over ₹13,000 crore launched by Mr. Modi on Sunday (October 12), besides railway and road projects undertaken by the Centre in Tamil Nadu in the recent past.

“This game of creating divisions is being played from Pune to Chennai, and at both places, it is falling far below the level of reality,” he said, accusing Mr. Gandhi of trying to create a conflict between northern and southern India.

Mr. Trivedi said such attempts would not succeed. He highlighted that at the last Kashi Tamil Sangamam, Mr. Modi’s speech was translated into Tamil using AI and said that translations into 22 Indian languages are now available in Parliament. “Within a few years, technology will facilitate translation of any language, both orally and in text, resolving the issue completely,” he said.