The Centre is committed to implementing the New Education Policy across the country, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Monday, and dismissed the Tamil Nadu government's opposition to the NEP as "politics".

He said the NEP does not impose Hindi or any other language on students in the DMK-ruled state "but what is wrong if a student in Tamil Nadu learns multilingual aspect in education?" "It can be Tamil, English and other Indian languages," he told reporters here. "There is no imposition of Hindi or any other language on them. Some friends in Tamil Nadu are doing politics. But the Indian government is committed to implementing NEP and there are certain conditions with NEP."

The Centre and the Tamil Nadu government have been at the loggerheads on the implementation of the NEP and three-language formula proposed in the policy.

"Tamil Nadu (government) is not implementing the policy because of its political interests but to create competition among students, to create a level-playing field, we have to come to a common platform. The NEP is the new aspirational common platform. I respect all languages. This NEP, envisioned by PM Modi, is puts emphasis on the mother tongue...Tamil is one of the oldest languages of our civilisation," he told Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday accused Pradhan of "blackmail" for allegedly taking a stand that Tamil Nadu would not be provided funds till it accepts the NEP.

Stalin had earlier this month also accused the Centre of resorting to "open blackmail" by snatching away Rs 2,152 crore meant for the state and giving it to other states for refusing to accept the National Education Policy.

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