BJP leader Pon Radhakrishnan said that his wish as a Tamilian is to develop our language.

While the controversy over Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks refuses to die down, BJP leader Pon Radhakrishnan on Friday advocated for recognition of Tamil as the national language.

"My wish as a Tamilian is that we develop our language. If we improve the status of our language and if it is spread across all states, then Tamil can also become a national language," Mr Radhakrishnan was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

"At the same time, we have to accept one language for communication only," the former union minister added.

Last week, Mr Shah had triggered a political row when he had said that it is important the country had one language reflecting its identity and only Hindi could unite the country.

The Home Minister's statements drew sharp reactions from the opposition parties, particularly from southern states.

Later, Mr Shah, who is also the BJP president, issued a clarification saying he had only requested people to learn Hindi as their second language and did not mean imposing it over any regional language.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK) had planned to launch a protest on September 20 against the Home Minister's statement. However, the party postponed the agitation after Mr Shah issued a clarification.