Chennai, 13 March (H.S.) : In a move that has sparked controversy, the Tamil Nadu government has replaced the Indian rupee symbol ‘₹’ with the Tamil letter ‘ரூ’ (pronounced as Ru) in the official logo of its 2025-26 state budget. This decision, made under the leadership of Chief Minister MK Stalin, comes amid the ongoing debate over language policies and the state’s opposition to the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. BJP IT Cell Coordinator , Pallavi asked Stalin must know that designer of ₹ is Udaya Kumar Dharmalingam, son of a former DMK MLA.
The Tamil Nadu government has been using ‘ரூ’ in the Tamil version of budget speeches and related documents, as is customary. This year’s Economic Survey also uses ‘ரூ’ for monetary figures in the Tamil version, while the English version retains the ‘₹’ symbol.
The Tamilnadu BJP Head K Annamalai on X handl (https://x.com/annamalai_k/status/1900103792299041115)stated, The DMK Government’s State Budget for 2025-26 replaces the Rupee Symbol designed by a Tamilian, which was adopted by the whole of Bharat and incorporated into our Currency. Thiru Udhay Kumar, who designed the symbol, is the son of a former DMK MLA. How stupid can you become, Thiru @mkstalin.
He has criticized the move, with spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy stating that it reflects the Tamil party’s stance of being different from India. However, DMK leader Saravanan Annadurai defended the decision, saying that there is nothing illegal about it and that the government prioritizes Tamil.
Pallavi CT@pallavict , Co-convener BJP Mumbai – IT has commented on X handle ( https://x.com/pallavict/status/1900122692172554437) and stated, Dear Stalin, you have CHECKMATED yourself. You replaced Indian Rupee (₹) sign in #TNBudget2025. Don’t you know that the designer of ₹ is Udaya Kumar Dharmalingam, son of a former DMK MLA? Further added, You have insulted India. You have insulted Tamil language & people. If you had really respected Tamil, you should have removed pictures of Periyar from all your offices and public places. He called Tamil a barbaric language.
The controversy has sparked a heated debate, with Tamil Nadu BJP president Annamalai taking to social media to criticize the move. The Tamil Nadu government has yet to issue an official statement on the matter.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Dr. R. B. Chaudhary
