Let's not equate Hindi with nationalism, says S M Krishna on Kanimozhi episode

Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Minister of External Affairs SM Krishna on Tuesday asked people not to equate Hindi with nationalism and asserted that not knowing the language does not make one “any less Indian”. His remark came days after a Central Industrial Security Force officer at the Chennai airport allegedly asked Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi if she was Indian because she did not know Hindi.

Krishna said he was dismayed by the way Kanimozhi was treated at the airport. “Hindi is another Indian language and nothing more,” he tweeted. “Let’s not equate Hindi with nationalism.”

Following the incident, Kanimozhi on Sunday asserted she was “as much Indian as anybody else”. She also accused the ruling BJP of trying to impose Hindi in the country. Later in the day, the CISF ordered an inquiry into the incident.