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Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power

A 46-second video is being widely shared on social media with the claim that anti-Hindi protests have erupted across Tamil Nadu after the newly formed TVK government assumed office. The…

The post Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power appeared first on Alt News.

A 46-second video is being widely shared on social media with the claim that anti-Hindi protests have erupted across Tamil Nadu after the newly formed TVK government assumed office. The viral clip shows a group of people smearing black paint over Hindi signboards at railway stations.

X user Bhakt Prahlad posted the video on May 10, 2026. The post has garnered over 270,000 views and 1500 reshares. The bio of the user says “Lawyer | Sanatani | Proud Hindu”. (Archive)

The video was also shared by X user Anuradha Mishra with a similar claim on May 12, 2026. (Archive)

The same video was posted by several social media users around May 10-12 echoing similar claims. They either called it ‘fresh protests’ or linked it directly to TVK and Joseph Vijay.

Click to view slideshow.

Fact Check

We extracted a few keyframes from the viral video and performed a reverse image search on them. This led us to a Threads post by Sun News dated March 12, 2026, which carried the same footage.

According to the post, activists protesting against the alleged imposition of Hindi had smeared black paint over Hindi lettering on signboards at railway stations such as Chromepet and Nungambakkam in Chennai. The on-screen Tamil text in the video, translated using Google Lens, read: “In Chennai Rail Station, Hindi Letters Removed”.

The visuals match exactly with the video which is now going viral.

Local media outlet Unseen Chennai posted the same video on Facebook and on Instagram, on the same date — March 12.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Unseen Chennai (@unseenchennai)

 

Anti-Hindi protests erupted in Chennai and adjoining in March following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Tamil Nadu on March 11, 2026. The demonstrations were spearheaded by an organization called 17 May Movement and its leader, Thirumurugan Gandhi.

To sum up, the viral video of Hindi letters on railway station boards being defaced is more than two-month old. It is being falsely linked to TVK coming to power in Tamil Nadu.

The post Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power appeared first on Alt News.


This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Anindya Hazra.


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Anindya Hazra | Radio Free (2026-05-16T06:22:07+00:00) Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2026/05/16/tamil-nadu-anti-hindi-protests-from-march-falsely-linked-to-tvk-assuming-power/

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" » Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power." Anindya Hazra | Radio Free - Saturday May 16, 2026, https://www.radiofree.org/2026/05/16/tamil-nadu-anti-hindi-protests-from-march-falsely-linked-to-tvk-assuming-power/
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Anindya Hazra | Radio Free Saturday May 16, 2026 » Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power., viewed ,<https://www.radiofree.org/2026/05/16/tamil-nadu-anti-hindi-protests-from-march-falsely-linked-to-tvk-assuming-power/>
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» Tamil Nadu anti-Hindi protests from March falsely linked to TVK assuming power | Anindya Hazra | Radio Free | https://www.radiofree.org/2026/05/16/tamil-nadu-anti-hindi-protests-from-march-falsely-linked-to-tvk-assuming-power/ |

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