Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was the last to remark on Thursday regarding the DMK's judgment to replace the rupee symbol with the Tamil letter (Ru,ரூ), but her remarks were the most pointed. She stated that the move "signals a dangerous mindset that weakens Indian unity and promotes secessionist sentiments under the pretence of regional pride". She called it "a completely avoidable example of language and regional chauvinism." She also questioned why the DMK had not raised its concerns earlier.

The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu replaced the Devnagari rupee symbol (Re) in promotional material for the upcoming state budget, scheduled for Friday morning. This move was seen as a statement against what the party calls the Centre’s "imposition of Hindi" through its mandatory three-language policy in schools. As a result, the DMK has faced intense political backlash since morning. State BJP chief K. Annamalai criticised the move, pointing out that the son of a former DMK MLA designed the nationally accepted rupee symbol. He went on to call the ruling party "stupid." Meanwhile, former Governor and BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan claimed that replacing the symbol "is against the Constitution". They challenged Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to change his name to a Tamil option.

The finance minister responded in the evening with a detailed post on X. Charging the DMK with "utterly disregarding the creative contribution of a Tamil youth", she stated, "All elected representatives and authorities are sworn under the Constitution to uphold the sovereignty and integrity of our nation. Removing a national symbol like 'Rs' from the State Budget documents goes against that very oath, weakening the commitment to national unity".

The DMK government has allegedly removed the official Rupee symbol 'Rs' from the Tamil Nadu Budget 2025-26 documents. "The Rupee symbol '₹' is internationally well-recognised and serves as a visible identity of India in global financial transactions. At a time when India is pushing for cross-border payments using UPI, should we really be undermining our own national currency symbol?" she said. "If the DMK has a problem with '₹', why didn't it protest back in 2010 when it was officially adopted under the @INCIndia-led UPA government, at a time when the DMK was part of the ruling alliance at the Centre?" she asked.

The DMK has stated that using 'ரூ' alone emphasises Tamil and reflects their love for the language. DMK leader Saravanan Annadurai said, "There is nothing illegal about it... this is not a 'showdown'. We prioritise Tamil, that is why the government went ahead with this."

In an election year, the DMK has challenged the BJP-led Centre on two issues: the three-language policy, which the Centre wants Tamil Nadu to adopt, and delimitation. The party claims both are tactics to impose northern dominance through language, culture, and politics. The Centre, however, argues that Hindi is just one of 22 languages in the Education Policy. Union Minister Amit Shah has also relayed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance that the south will not lose any seats due to delimitation. Despite this, the controversy continues to escalate.