Chennai, Jan 29: Gandhiji has visited Tamil Nadu twenty times between 1896 and 1946. His association with Tamils started in South Africa while practising law. He has visited the interiors of the state and interacted with diverse personalities such as Kanchi saint
Chandrasekara Saraswati and E.V.Ramaswamy Periyar.
“His harijan yatras to the state were spurned by orthodox people. Though the Kanchi Acharya appreciated Gandhi’s devotion to God during the meeting between them in 1927, the Acharya objected to Gandhiji’s politics of inclusion of harijans. But Gandhiji ignored the criticism,” said A.Marx, author of the book Gandhi and Tamil orthodoxy.
Though rationalist leader E.V.Ramaswamy Periyar did not meet Gandhiji after July 1927, Periyar always had high regards for Gandhiji. When Gandhiji passed away in 1948, he suggested that India should be named Gandhistan. He also wanted Indian year and religion named after Gandhi.
It was during his visit to Madurai in 1925, he decided to change his attire to be seen as one with the poor peasants of the country. As he supported the temple entry agitation of the dalits and the OBCs, they were able to enter Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple in 1939 under the leadership of Vaidyanatha Iyer.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Chennai's encounters with the Mahatma
CHENNAI, JAN 29: Chennai's streets reverberate with memories of the
Mahatma. From the Victoria Public Hall near the Central railway station, Thakkar Baba Vidyalaya on Venkatnarayana Road, Srinivasa Iyengar's house in Alwarpet (now Chola Sheraton) to the Marina beach, the city has many bonds with Mahatma Gandhi.
During his first visit to the city in 1896, he spoke of the plight of Indian workers in South Africa at a meeting held in Pachayappan Hall near Parrys Corner. However, he made a more memorable speech at the Victoria Public Hall in 1915 during his second visit.
"Do you know that in the great city of Johannesburg, the Madrasis look on Madrasis as dishonoured if he or she has not passed through the jails once or twice during this terrible crisis that your countrymen in South Africa went through during these eight long years?" he asked in the meeting.
His third visit to the city in 1916 was to mobilise students for the freedom struggle. He addressed the students at the MadrasChristian College and Victoria Hostel.
While his fourth visit was a short one en route Patna in 1917, it was during his fifth visit in 1919, he addressed a gathering of nearly 15,000 people on the Marina beach. He met poet Subramania Bharathi during this visit.
His visits to the city invited both bouquets and brickbats.
His advice to the youth to marry young widows at a meeting in Pachayappan Hall during 1927 was criticized by a section of the local media.
During his last visit in 1946, he stayed at the Hindi Prachara Sabha in T.Nagar and addressed a prayer meeting of nearly one lakh people there.
Mahatma. From the Victoria Public Hall near the Central railway station, Thakkar Baba Vidyalaya on Venkatnarayana Road, Srinivasa Iyengar's house in Alwarpet (now Chola Sheraton) to the Marina beach, the city has many bonds with Mahatma Gandhi.
During his first visit to the city in 1896, he spoke of the plight of Indian workers in South Africa at a meeting held in Pachayappan Hall near Parrys Corner. However, he made a more memorable speech at the Victoria Public Hall in 1915 during his second visit.
"Do you know that in the great city of Johannesburg, the Madrasis look on Madrasis as dishonoured if he or she has not passed through the jails once or twice during this terrible crisis that your countrymen in South Africa went through during these eight long years?" he asked in the meeting.
His third visit to the city in 1916 was to mobilise students for the freedom struggle. He addressed the students at the MadrasChristian College and Victoria Hostel.
While his fourth visit was a short one en route Patna in 1917, it was during his fifth visit in 1919, he addressed a gathering of nearly 15,000 people on the Marina beach. He met poet Subramania Bharathi during this visit.
His visits to the city invited both bouquets and brickbats.
His advice to the youth to marry young widows at a meeting in Pachayappan Hall during 1927 was criticized by a section of the local media.
During his last visit in 1946, he stayed at the Hindi Prachara Sabha in T.Nagar and addressed a prayer meeting of nearly one lakh people there.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Chemmozhi Institute limping
Chennai, Oct. 14: The delay in appointment of director and senior executives for Central Institute of Classical Tamil (CICT) by the Centre even after five months of its institution here has raised questions as to whether the Centre is adopting a partisan attitude towards Tamil.
CICT is the pet project of chief minister M.Karunanidhi. He has visited the CICT here six times in the last five months. Originally known as Centre of Excellence for Classical Tamil and was based in Mysore, the institute moved to Chennai in mid-May 2008. The 65 scholars in the institute have made remarkable progress in research on classical Tamil literature and Tamil dialects.
However, the inordinate delay by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) in transferring financial and executive powers to the institute makes the employees remain temporary staff and the salaries are delayed every month.
Anyone from across the world can learn Tamil online if one of the ten ambitious projects of this institute takes off in six months as planned. The mission of taking Tamil to the world arena through standardization of 41 Tamil classics from the classical phase (300 B.C to 600 A.D) is almost complete. The dialect research wing is ready with 10,000 new Tamil words through field research across the state.
The delay in appointment of director, registrar and finance officer for the institute has slowed down the decision-making process. Though MHRD sources claim the selection process would begin soon, the temporary basis of employees and delay in disbursal of salaries has weakened the team momentum. Field research is not undertaken to record new vocabulary after the pilot study as decision-making is delayed.
“We work hard to bring out high quality work aimed at establishing the classical nature of Tamil language. We have been working on a specialized library on Thirukkural (ancient couplets) and Tholkappiyam (a grammatical treatise) which will be a one-stop reference point,” said Mr K.Ramasamy, present officer-in-charge and retired director of the institute.
“There is a slowdown as the transition is not complete yet. Dealing with the MHRD is quite difficult and it causes few hardships,” he admitted.
CICT is the pet project of chief minister M.Karunanidhi. He has visited the CICT here six times in the last five months. Originally known as Centre of Excellence for Classical Tamil and was based in Mysore, the institute moved to Chennai in mid-May 2008. The 65 scholars in the institute have made remarkable progress in research on classical Tamil literature and Tamil dialects.
However, the inordinate delay by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) in transferring financial and executive powers to the institute makes the employees remain temporary staff and the salaries are delayed every month.
Anyone from across the world can learn Tamil online if one of the ten ambitious projects of this institute takes off in six months as planned. The mission of taking Tamil to the world arena through standardization of 41 Tamil classics from the classical phase (300 B.C to 600 A.D) is almost complete. The dialect research wing is ready with 10,000 new Tamil words through field research across the state.
The delay in appointment of director, registrar and finance officer for the institute has slowed down the decision-making process. Though MHRD sources claim the selection process would begin soon, the temporary basis of employees and delay in disbursal of salaries has weakened the team momentum. Field research is not undertaken to record new vocabulary after the pilot study as decision-making is delayed.
“We work hard to bring out high quality work aimed at establishing the classical nature of Tamil language. We have been working on a specialized library on Thirukkural (ancient couplets) and Tholkappiyam (a grammatical treatise) which will be a one-stop reference point,” said Mr K.Ramasamy, present officer-in-charge and retired director of the institute.
“There is a slowdown as the transition is not complete yet. Dealing with the MHRD is quite difficult and it causes few hardships,” he admitted.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Untold story of the youth behind the bars
Chennai, August 12: International Association of People’s Lawyers (IAPL) called the police’s bluff on the arrests of Muslim youth in Tamil Nadu post-Ahmedabad blasts. In a detailed fact-finding report on the arrests made by the state police after the Bengaluru and Ahmedabad blasts, 13 advocates in the fact-finding team claimed that the arrests were made without any “evidence.”
“Police are spreading news that the arrested Muslim youth have been plotting to blast Anna flyover on Independence Day. That has created panic among the public. We, as lawyers upholding the rule of law, wanted to ascertain the truth after meeting the five Muslim prisoners, their families and the concerned police officials,” said Mr Narayanan, joint secretary of IAPL.
Thirteen lawyers from three human rights organizations including IAPL visited the Muslim youth who are imprisoned post-Ahmedabad blasts for an alleged plot. They also interviewed the family members of the arrested youth and the concerned police officials.
“The police’s claims that the youth are planning terror strikes on Independence Day are false. The false propaganda is aimed at creating Islamophobia and getting more funds for the police force,” said Mr S.Manoharan, general secretary, IAPL.
“The youth are threatened with encounter killings and are forced to give statements according to the whims and fancies of the police. Human rights of the prisoners are violated during the interrogation,” said the fact-finding report.
“Late-night hour raids in the houses of Muslim youth, intimidation of the relatives of the prisoners are clear violation of the rule of law. The state government should order a judicial probe into the recent arrests of Muslim youth to put an end to the false propaganda spread by the intelligence agencies,” added the report.
In the meanwhile, imprisoned Abdul Gafoor’s wife Zeenat Najma petitioned the state human rights commission (SHRC) that her husband was implicated in a false case and sought the commission to order a CBI probe into her husband’s arrest. She said her husband was not a terrorist. Imprisoned Heera’s father Syed Nazeem wrote to the chief minister seeking fair retrial in the case of Heera.
“Police are spreading news that the arrested Muslim youth have been plotting to blast Anna flyover on Independence Day. That has created panic among the public. We, as lawyers upholding the rule of law, wanted to ascertain the truth after meeting the five Muslim prisoners, their families and the concerned police officials,” said Mr Narayanan, joint secretary of IAPL.
Thirteen lawyers from three human rights organizations including IAPL visited the Muslim youth who are imprisoned post-Ahmedabad blasts for an alleged plot. They also interviewed the family members of the arrested youth and the concerned police officials.
“The police’s claims that the youth are planning terror strikes on Independence Day are false. The false propaganda is aimed at creating Islamophobia and getting more funds for the police force,” said Mr S.Manoharan, general secretary, IAPL.
“The youth are threatened with encounter killings and are forced to give statements according to the whims and fancies of the police. Human rights of the prisoners are violated during the interrogation,” said the fact-finding report.
“Late-night hour raids in the houses of Muslim youth, intimidation of the relatives of the prisoners are clear violation of the rule of law. The state government should order a judicial probe into the recent arrests of Muslim youth to put an end to the false propaganda spread by the intelligence agencies,” added the report.
In the meanwhile, imprisoned Abdul Gafoor’s wife Zeenat Najma petitioned the state human rights commission (SHRC) that her husband was implicated in a false case and sought the commission to order a CBI probe into her husband’s arrest. She said her husband was not a terrorist. Imprisoned Heera’s father Syed Nazeem wrote to the chief minister seeking fair retrial in the case of Heera.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Tamil poet’s family ostracised
Chennai, Jan.20: The culture of alcohol consumption in Muslim societies is being debated across the globe. But when a Tamil writer attempted that six months ago in a literary monthly magazine Uyirmmai published from here, not only the writer but also his family was excommunicated by the local jamaat. Award-winning Tamil poet Mr.H.G.Rasool (47), his wife Ms.Fareeda Begum (45), his children Nasrin (18) and Ruhi Parveen (8) are living amid hostility at their residence in Thuckalay in Kanyakumari district. They cannot attend family get-togethers such as marriages or the annual urs in the local dargah.
Mr.Rasool’s essay was titled “culture of drinking in Islam.” He discussed the culture of drinking in the light of quran, hadith and Islamic history. The teetotaller poet concluded that “mild drinking” was accepted in many Muslim societies and also inferred that “drinking is not a punishable offence in the light of quran.” That was reason enough to “provoke” the local jamaat to the extent of excommunicating him.
“Mr.Rasool has to write an apology letter in the same magazine for having underestimated the intelligence of crores of Muslims in the world,” Mr.Jehabar Sadiq, president of Anjuvannam Peer Mohammadiyya Muslim Association (APMA), the jamaat which ostracised him, told this journalist.
The irony is that Mr.Rasool was Vice-President of APMA jamaat for five years till he was expelled in May 2007 following the controversial essay. “I was not saying anything on my own. I deduced from various available literature that mild drinking is not a punishable offence in Islam,” said the poet.
The poet was under attack from the ulema five years ago for a controversial poem which wanted to know if there were any women prophets in human history.
Social ostracism in Tamil Muslim community meant complete exclusion from community life. “We are psychologically disturbed by the isolation. We are grateful to the relatives and friends who are still standing by us. I hope things will be alright soon,” said Nasrin who is studying second year in a college at Nagercoil, 16 kms from Thuckalay.
Mr.Rasool’s essay was titled “culture of drinking in Islam.” He discussed the culture of drinking in the light of quran, hadith and Islamic history. The teetotaller poet concluded that “mild drinking” was accepted in many Muslim societies and also inferred that “drinking is not a punishable offence in the light of quran.” That was reason enough to “provoke” the local jamaat to the extent of excommunicating him.
“Mr.Rasool has to write an apology letter in the same magazine for having underestimated the intelligence of crores of Muslims in the world,” Mr.Jehabar Sadiq, president of Anjuvannam Peer Mohammadiyya Muslim Association (APMA), the jamaat which ostracised him, told this journalist.
The irony is that Mr.Rasool was Vice-President of APMA jamaat for five years till he was expelled in May 2007 following the controversial essay. “I was not saying anything on my own. I deduced from various available literature that mild drinking is not a punishable offence in Islam,” said the poet.
The poet was under attack from the ulema five years ago for a controversial poem which wanted to know if there were any women prophets in human history.
Social ostracism in Tamil Muslim community meant complete exclusion from community life. “We are psychologically disturbed by the isolation. We are grateful to the relatives and friends who are still standing by us. I hope things will be alright soon,” said Nasrin who is studying second year in a college at Nagercoil, 16 kms from Thuckalay.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Madigas’ internal reservation demand gathers momentum
Chennai, Jan. 8: In what seems to be a fight for a space within the existing space, Telugu-speaking Arundhatiyar (the equivalent of Madigas in Andhra Pradesh) organizations in the state demand six per cent reservation for the community within the 18 per cent allotted for the Scheduled Castes. “We demand six per cent reservation within the 18 per cent reservation for Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu,” Mr.R.Adhiyaman, President, Aathi Thamizhar Peravai, an umbrella organisation of Arundhatiyars in Tamil Nadu told this journalist.
Andhra Pradesh model where Madigas enjoyed seven per cent reservation for four years (2000-2004) emboldened Arundhatiyars in the state to renew their decades-old demand. “Andhra Pradesh government has given seven per cent reservation for Madigas in their state. But Supreme Court struck it down after four years. Tamil Nadu government should have the political will to follow that example,” Mr.Dayalan, President, Arundhatiyar Viduthalai Munnani, told this journalist.
Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) which is in the forefront of internal reservation struggles in the state is vocal about this issue. “Even before the PMK was launched in 1989, we have been demanding internal reservation for Arundhatiyars. We had a conference in Erode demanding internal reservation for Arundhatiyars,” Mr.S.Ramadoss, founder-president of PMK told this journalist. He insisted the Tamil Nadu government should consider this demand seriously.
“The demand for internal reservation for Arundhatiyars is valid and our party organised a huge rally in Chennai last year to press for this demand. We are going to press for it again at our state conference to be held in Madurai from January 8 to 10” Mr. N.Varadarajan, state secretary, CPM, told this journalist. He added, “I am confident that the Chief Minister will heed our demand.”
CPI’s state deputy secretary C.Mahendran said, “The government should understand that the Arundhatiyar community requires special measures to enhance its status in the society.” He added, “The dominant dalit political groups should give ground and help the state ensure special opportunities for the Arundhatiyars.”
Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) led by Mr.Thol.Thirumavalavan supported the demand of Arundhatiyars in their election manifesto during May 2006 Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu. But they retracted their stance after CPM took up the cause last year. When contacted by this journalist, Mr.Thirumavalavan said, “I will comment on this issue later.”
With parties such as PMK,CPM and CPI already expressing support, Aathi Thamizhar Peravai, United Arunthatiyar Front – a grouping of seven Arundhatiyar organizations are planning a huge rally in Chennai next month to demand six per cent reservation for Arundhatiyar community in Tamil Nadu.
Andhra Pradesh model where Madigas enjoyed seven per cent reservation for four years (2000-2004) emboldened Arundhatiyars in the state to renew their decades-old demand. “Andhra Pradesh government has given seven per cent reservation for Madigas in their state. But Supreme Court struck it down after four years. Tamil Nadu government should have the political will to follow that example,” Mr.Dayalan, President, Arundhatiyar Viduthalai Munnani, told this journalist.
Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) which is in the forefront of internal reservation struggles in the state is vocal about this issue. “Even before the PMK was launched in 1989, we have been demanding internal reservation for Arundhatiyars. We had a conference in Erode demanding internal reservation for Arundhatiyars,” Mr.S.Ramadoss, founder-president of PMK told this journalist. He insisted the Tamil Nadu government should consider this demand seriously.
“The demand for internal reservation for Arundhatiyars is valid and our party organised a huge rally in Chennai last year to press for this demand. We are going to press for it again at our state conference to be held in Madurai from January 8 to 10” Mr. N.Varadarajan, state secretary, CPM, told this journalist. He added, “I am confident that the Chief Minister will heed our demand.”
CPI’s state deputy secretary C.Mahendran said, “The government should understand that the Arundhatiyar community requires special measures to enhance its status in the society.” He added, “The dominant dalit political groups should give ground and help the state ensure special opportunities for the Arundhatiyars.”
Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) led by Mr.Thol.Thirumavalavan supported the demand of Arundhatiyars in their election manifesto during May 2006 Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu. But they retracted their stance after CPM took up the cause last year. When contacted by this journalist, Mr.Thirumavalavan said, “I will comment on this issue later.”
With parties such as PMK,CPM and CPI already expressing support, Aathi Thamizhar Peravai, United Arunthatiyar Front – a grouping of seven Arundhatiyar organizations are planning a huge rally in Chennai next month to demand six per cent reservation for Arundhatiyar community in Tamil Nadu.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Dalit uprising met with thrashing
Chennai, Dec. 20: This incident reminds one of feudal ages when slavery was an accepted social practice. Mr.M.Subramaniam (44), a labourer belonging to Arundhatiyar community and a resident of Ramakrishnapuram near Tiruttani, 84 kms from here was beaten black and blue in front of the village temple when scores of villagers watched as mute spectators. He was attacked by a group of caste Hindu Naidus of the same village for questioning them on denial of passage to his residence. “Mr.M.Subramaniam has given a complaint to the police about the atrocity; the police is not taking necessary action”, says Mr.M.Venkataiyan, a social activist from Tiruttani who helped him get medical treatment. Subramaniam’s wife and three children now live in fear of being attacked by caste Hindus as they are isolated from their own community and branded as “trouble-makers”.
Ramakrishnapuram is a serene village on Tiruttani hills where caste Hindu Naidus are in a majority (nearly 50 families) and Dalit Arundhatiyars a minority (only 8 families). Of the eight Arundhatiyar families, only Subramaniam’s family is not into doing menial work for caste Hindu households. His children are getting school education and he prefers going to masonry work at Tiruttani than doing servile work to Naidu landlords.
“We had a 12-feet wide, half a kilometer long approach road from our colony to the main road allotted by the then Adi-Dravida welfare tashildar Mr.Duraikannu in 1999. But the passage was occupied by Mr.Narayanaswamy Naidu and few others and they started cultivation in the passage,” Mr.Subramaniam told this journalist. “When I pointed out that this is in violation of government norms, they got angry,” he added.
A case was registered with the Tiruttani Police Station in this regard one month ago. But no caste Hindu was arrested till date. When this journalist met Mr.Kalappan Naidu against whom complaint was given, he admitted that he had hit Mr.Subramaniam as he provoked the caste Hindus in the village. Mr.E.Magesh, Inspector of Police, Tiruttani, observed: “It is the responsibility of local revenue officials to ensure that the Arundhatiyar people get a proper passage.”
But the situation on the bureaucratic front is pathetic. “Tiruttani Adi-Dravida Welfare office does not have a Revenue Inspector or a Surveyor; only an office assistant is there,” observed Mr.Sampath Kumar, Adi-Dravida welfare Tashildar of Tiruvellore, who was given additional charge of Tiruttani when this journalist brought to his notice the plight of Arundhatiyars in Ramakrishnapuram. Official apathy and police inaction seem to help caste domination remain intact.
Ramakrishnapuram is a serene village on Tiruttani hills where caste Hindu Naidus are in a majority (nearly 50 families) and Dalit Arundhatiyars a minority (only 8 families). Of the eight Arundhatiyar families, only Subramaniam’s family is not into doing menial work for caste Hindu households. His children are getting school education and he prefers going to masonry work at Tiruttani than doing servile work to Naidu landlords.
“We had a 12-feet wide, half a kilometer long approach road from our colony to the main road allotted by the then Adi-Dravida welfare tashildar Mr.Duraikannu in 1999. But the passage was occupied by Mr.Narayanaswamy Naidu and few others and they started cultivation in the passage,” Mr.Subramaniam told this journalist. “When I pointed out that this is in violation of government norms, they got angry,” he added.
A case was registered with the Tiruttani Police Station in this regard one month ago. But no caste Hindu was arrested till date. When this journalist met Mr.Kalappan Naidu against whom complaint was given, he admitted that he had hit Mr.Subramaniam as he provoked the caste Hindus in the village. Mr.E.Magesh, Inspector of Police, Tiruttani, observed: “It is the responsibility of local revenue officials to ensure that the Arundhatiyar people get a proper passage.”
But the situation on the bureaucratic front is pathetic. “Tiruttani Adi-Dravida Welfare office does not have a Revenue Inspector or a Surveyor; only an office assistant is there,” observed Mr.Sampath Kumar, Adi-Dravida welfare Tashildar of Tiruvellore, who was given additional charge of Tiruttani when this journalist brought to his notice the plight of Arundhatiyars in Ramakrishnapuram. Official apathy and police inaction seem to help caste domination remain intact.
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