Amid the ongoing three-language row between Tamil Nadu and the Centre, CM Stalin has made a bold move by altering the state budget logo. He replaced the rupee symbol with the Tamil letter for ‘Ru’, a change that has raised eyebrows within the Centre and BJP leadership. This is perhaps the first time any state has dropped the national currency symbol.
This happened just before the tabling of its budget on March 14. The budget logo, which read ‘Ellorkkum Ellaam’ (Everything for Everyone), was released by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin’s office on Thursday afternoon. However, the same logo had the rupee symbol in the Devanagari script last year- This according to CMO office is for giving importance to the Tamil language.
The Tamil Nadu government’s latest move comes amid its ongoing standoff with the Centre over the three-language policy. The state has long followed a two-language system—Tamil and English—and has strongly opposed the Centre’s push for a three-language policy, calling it an attempt to impose Hindi on Tamil speakers.
Tamil Nadu has also resisted the National Education Policy (NEP), which includes the three-language formula, arguing that it goes against the state’s linguistic and cultural identity.
How BJP Reacted
The Tamil Nadu government has not yet issued any official statement regarding this change. However, a BJP spokesperson told NDTV that the move reflects the Tamil party’s stance of being “different from India.” Narayanan Thirupathy of the BJP added that the rupee symbol is widely recognized as a symbol of India.
Can the Union Home Ministry Intervene?
Tamil Nadu’s decision to drop the rupee symbol from its budget logo has sparked political debate, but legally, it doesn’t hold much ground for interference. The rupee symbol is India’s official currency sign, but there’s no rule requiring states to use it in their budget logos—it’s purely a design choice.
This move doesn’t change the currency’s legal status or impact its use in any way. So, there’s no real legal basis for Amit Shah or the Centre to step in. Instead, it seems more like a political message than a policy violation.
