Speaking on the topic ‘Coalition Government at the Centre and Autonomy for States’ on Sunday, the former Union minister asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to prove ‘state autonomy’ to Tamil Nadu and not push them to seek an ‘independent country’
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader A Raja on Sunday sparked a row after asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to provide ‘state autonomy’ to Tamil Nadu, and not push them to seek an independent country.
Raja, addressing a party meet of representatives of urban local bodies in western Tamil Nadu’s Namakkal in the presence of Chief Minister MK Stalin, said though Thanthai Periyar, the icon of the Dravidian movement, stood for an independent Tamil Nadu, the DMK moved away from it.
The party though accepted Periyar backed integrity and democracy and said, ‘long live India’ and the party continues to stick to that line, Raja added.
Speaking on the topic ‘Coalition Government at the Centre and Autonomy for States’, Raja explained in detail the rights that the Constitution originally granted to the Union and state governments.
Let’s examine what Raja said, why it is meaningful and the reactions to it:
What did Raja say?
“I am telling Amit Shah and the Prime Minister with utmost humility, I implore you in the presence of (our) leaders on the dais, our chief minister is journeying on the path of Anna (CN Annadurai, former Chief Minister and DMK founder), do not push us on the path of Periyar. Do not make us seek a separate country, give state autonomy and we will not rest till then,” Raja said.
“The Prime Minister claims that all Indian states are treated equally. Amit Shah (Union Home Minister) believes that the Hindi language is critical to uniting India. Please don’t think I’m being arrogant because I’m part of the ruling party in Tamil Nadu, or because our chief minister is on stage here; let me remind you that the DMK came to embrace the federal system for the unity and love for India by relinquishing the demand for a separate state,” Raja was quoted as saying by Indian Express.
The DMK leader said that Periyar, three months before his death, wrote that the “Hindu religion would retain me as a Sudra as long as I remain a part of India… as long as my Tamil people remain part of India, they will not have appropriate representation, share in jobs, or prosperity”.
“He (Periyar) urged the youth to build an independent Tamil Nadu. He said that an independent Tamil Nadu is the final destiny. Even though we regard him as the founder of our political thought, we have abandoned his call for the sake of India’s unification,” he added, as per the report.
As per Deccan Herald, referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement that Hindi was the only language that could unite India, Raja “reminded” him that East Pakistan seceded from Pakistan only because Urdu was “imposed” on the Bengali-speaking people.
“Will a language unite a country? When Mohammed Ali Jinnah spoke in Urdu in East Pakistan, a young man stood up in protest. He said Bengali was their language and asked him to speak in Bengali. Jinnah refused and Pakistan split into two (two decades later),” Raja said, as per the report.
Scroll quoted Raja as saying that Tamil Nadu gets a less than 1.2 per cent of the funds allocated to all states from the Centre, despite making 10 per cent contribution to the country’s Goods and Services Tax revenues.
Why is this meaningful?
Raja’s statement comes after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said Hindi was the only language that could unite India.
Alleged Hindi imposition is a sensitive subject in Tamil Nadu and the DMK had successfully used the issue to mobilise public support in the 1960s.
The party has maintained that India is a Union of states, citing the Constitution, to seek functional autonomy.
The ruling party has of late been decrying attempts to ‘impose’ the language.
Incidentally, the state government has even alleged that imposition of Hindi in the National Education Policy 2020 and has made it clear Tamil Nadu would only follow its two language formula, Tamil and English, which has been in vogue in the state for decades.
In June, senior DMK leader and the party’s Rajya Sabha member TKS Elangovan claimed said Hindi would reduce Tamils to the status of “shudras” and that Hindi-speaking states in the country were not the developed ones while those with vernacular languages as mother tongue were doing well.
Attempts are being made to “impose Manu dharma through the imposition of Hindi,” Elangovan said in his remarks, that have went viral, while speaking at a conference on the language imposition issue, organised by the Dravidar Kazhagam, recently.
“What will Hindi do? Only make us shudras. It will do no benefit to us,” he said.
‘Shudras’ is the term used to denote the so-called lower rung in the caste hierarchy.
Elangovan further pointed out at non-Hindi speaking West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat and asked if these States were developed or not.
“Why I am asking is Hindi is not the mother tongue of people in these states. The undeveloped states are (the Hindi-speaking) Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and the newly created ones (apparently Uttarakhand). Why should I learn Hindi?” he asked.
Elangovan further said the Tamil pride is 2000 years old and that its culture always practised equality, including among genders. “They are trying to destroy the culture and trying to impose Manu Dharma through Hindi…this should not be allowed…if we did, we will be slaves, shudras,” he said.
Unity in diversity has been identity of the country and all languages must be promoted for its progress, he said. Elangovan’s sharp remarks came in the wake of his party colleague and State Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy’s jibe that Hindi-speaking people were selling ‘pani puri’ in the state, in response to claims that learning the language would fetch jobs.
“Many said you will get jobs if you learn Hindi. Is it so…look here in Coimbatore, who is selling pani puri. It is them (Hindi-speaking individuals),” he had said. He, however, later denied his remarks amounting to ‘profiling.’
State autonomy
Raja’s comment comes against the background of DMK sticking to the Tamil term ‘Ondriya Arasu’ (Union government) while referring to the Centre since it formed the state government in May 2021. Though ‘Mathiya Arasu (Central government)’ is the relatively more common usage, the DMK has stuck to ‘Ondriya Arasu’ to underscore “federalism” principles and to push for “state autonomy”.
However, the BJP and several right wing activists have claimed that ‘Ondriya Arasu’ usage had traces of divisive tendencies.
As per The Print, state autonomy has been one of of the top political agendas of the DMK since the 1960s, with its election manifestos beginning with a reference to federalism. The party gave up the demand for a separate ‘Dravida Nadu’ in 1963, after the 16th amendment to the Constitution sought to put an end to calls for secession.
In 1969, the PV Rajamannar committee was set up by the DMK to examine the relationship between the Centre and the state in a federal system.
It recommended an inter-state council for each state for the Union government to consult before enacting new laws.
The DMK reiterated these demands after it entered into an alliance with the Congress (I) in 1971, and, in 1974, presented a white paper in the Tamil Nadu Assembly and passed a resolution seeking autonomy.
The DMK’s Elangovan told The Print that he didn’t know if his party had acted against Raja for Sunday’s remarks, but that autonomy to the states is the party’s official position that “we’ve been talking about for the past 60 years now”.
“A division of power will help the states to grow. In turn, it will help the country to grow,” he said.
As per Scroll, Raja’s statements came on the same day that the BJP, during its national executive meeting in Hyderabad, pledged to form governments in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha.
‘Blatantly divisive’
Raja’s remark invited sharp criticisms on the social media with several hitting out at him for ‘separatist’ comment.
BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla tweeted: “It is one thing to oppose a party at Centre but while doing so will you start opposing idea of One India itself?”
Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) vice-president Narayanan Tirupathi condemned Raja’s remark as ‘blatantly divisive’. However, it was not a matter of surprise as the DMK is known for its ‘divisive’ attitude. “But what is shocking and surprising is that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin remained a mute spectator. I condemn his silence. He has taken oath of office, affirming allegiance to the Constitution.” Tamil Nadu’s ruling party should understand that “India has created States for its administrative purposes and that is precisely what the Constitution says,” Narayanan told PTI.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai criticised Raja for his statement and reminded him that this is not the 1960s. “The @arivalayam party believes they are entitled to plunder the state when in power, and if questioned, they will pull out their oldest trick called “state autonomy” and propagate separatism; they better be reminded that this is not the 60s,” he wrote on Twitter.
What is generally a pre-election rhetoric has begun this early isn’t surprising given the obstacles DMK men face in their pursuit of richness through corrupt means, Annamalai said, adding that making vile threats is a display of desperation when former ministers are facing corruption charges.
“Falling popularity after failing promises, @CMOTamilnadu should invent a better excuse for not delivering instead of pushing their defunct propaganda,” Annamalai added.
Asking for a separate state was “not the party’s stand” DMK’s TKS Elangovan told The Print.
“He (A. Raja) might have said it out of anger and frustration since the Union government is taking away the autonomy of the state,” he said, adding that the party believes states should be given more responsibilities.
DMK spokesperson Constantine Ravindran said Raja has made it amply clear that the party travelled on the path of Anna, fully supporting India’s integrity and the principles of democracy.
The message sought to be conveyed by Raja was that Tamil Nadu should be given autonomy to work towards development and uphold its rights as enshrined in the Constitution.
Tamil Nadu governor RN Ravi has not given his assent to several Bills passed by the state Assembly, he said and wanted to know if hampering development was the idea of the Union Government.
Under the BJP-led dispensation, the state government does not have any rights whatsoever, Ravindran told PTI.
With inputs from agencies