On August 22, Amit Shah apologized for not speaking Tamil at a Tirunelveli rally in Tamil Nadu, using a translator to deliver his speech. Five days later, on August 27, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin spoke in Tamil at a voter rally in Bihar without apologizing for not speaking Hindi. Stalin’s speech was translated into Hindi by a translator. During Stalin’s visit, BJP leaders highlighted videos of DMK leaders making derogatory remarks about Bihar and Hindi-speaking people. The BJP accused DMK leaders of being anti-Bihar and anti-Hindi and challenged Stalin to repeat controversial statements made by DMK members Udhayanidhi and Maran in Bihar, escalating the ongoing language and political debate between the two states.