Tamil Nadu CM Vijay switches to English in Independence Day speech

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay switched to English during the closing part of his Independence Day address from Fort St George. Delivering most of his speech in Tamil, he repeated key points in English for those who do not understand Tamil.

Deccan Chronicle reports Vijay underlined his mission to eliminate corruption and urged zero tolerance towards it. Greatandhra.com adds the anti-corruption agenda has been a major theme of his early tenure, and repeating the message in English ensured wider attention.

Vijay became only the second Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to use English in an Independence Day address. The language switch emerged as an unexpected talking point of his first such speech as CM.