T.N. Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin calls Sanskrit ‘dead language,’ BJP hits back

Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, on Friday (November 21, 2025), called Sanskrit “a dead language,” drawing a sharp response from the BJP which said leaders must be more responsible while making remarks.

The DMK leader was addressing a book release event held at Chennai, where he criticised the Union government for allotting only ₹150 crore for Tamil Development. In contrast, Sanskrit, “a dead language,” was getting ₹2,400 crore, he said.

Taking offence to his terminology, BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan told PTI that no one has the right to call any language dead, especially the one that is still used today in prayers and rituals across the country. “This mindset of appreciating one language only by putting down another is fundamentally wrong, and leaders must be more responsible when they speak about language and culture,” she said.

According to her, even Tamil has many inclusions from Sanskrit. “Tamil is an open-hearted language that has absorbed words and ideas from many tongues, including Sanskrit. This shows its strength, not its weakness,” she said.