Finance Minister criticizes Tamil Nadu government for replacing rupee symbol in budget material

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday criticized the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to replace the rupee symbol with a Tamil letter in its budget publicity material for 2025-26, calling it a “dangerous mindset” that weakens national unity.

The BJP has termed the move an insult to the national symbol, while the ruling DMK has defended it as a tribute to the Tamil language.

Sitharaman, in a post on X, said, “This is a sign of a dangerous mindset that weakens the unity of the country and promotes separatist sentiments under the pretext of regional pride.” She added that the rupee symbol is internationally recognized and represents India’s identity in global financial transactions.

“At a time when India is pushing for cross-border payments using UPI, should we really underestimate our own national currency symbol?” she said, highlighting that several countries, including Indonesia, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, use “rupee” in their currency names.

She further said that all elected representatives and officials take an oath to uphold national sovereignty and integrity, and removing national symbols from official documents contradicts that pledge.