The recent remarks by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Rajya Sabha MP R.S. Bharathi that the appointments of members of Scheduled Castes as Judges of the Madras High Court was nothing but “alms provided by the Dravidian movement” , only reflects the patronising attitude of the leaders of the Dravidian movement.
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In fact, late DMK leader and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi would often publicly state that he was a sambandhi of Dalits (a reference to the marriage of his son M. K. Alagiri to a woman belonging to a Scheduled Caste). He would also list out Dalits who were appointed to top bureaucratic positions in his government.
Dalit uplift neglected
This attitude should be placed against the backdrop of the criticism that the Dravidian movement , despite its remarkable contribution to social reforms, represented the interests of those who came next, after the Brahmins, that is the intermediate castes on the caste social ladder, but paid little attention for the uplift of Dalits.
The fact remains that members of Scheduled Castes have had to contend with less important posts in Dravidian party organisations and in the government. DMK MP A. Raja, who held the powerful portfolio of Communications and Information Technology at the Centre, may be the only exception.
‘Common mindset’
When asked about Mr. Bharathi’s comments, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leader Thol. Thirumavalavan said though his [Mr. Bharathi’s] intention was not to insult [Dalits], it only manifested the common mindset and psyche of Hindu society.
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“Mr. Bharathi had actually responded to critics who have been holding the Dravidian movement responsible for all the degeneration. But Dalits secured all their rights through the Constitution and not through an individual or a party,” Mr. Thirumavalavan said.
C. Lakshmanan, Associate Professor, Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS) pointed out that though Mr. Bharathi did not mean to be derogatory, the way he extended the debate was not good.
“He should have expressed regret for saying something unconsciously. But in a later interview to a television channel, he further deteriorated the debate by saying that his driver and cook were Dalits,” Dr. Lakshmanan pointed out.
“Mr. Bharathi had actually responded to critics who have been holding the Dravidian movement responsible for all the degeneration. But Dalits secured all their rights through the Constitution and not through an individual or a party,” Mr. Thirumavalavan said.
C. Lakshmanan, Associate Professor, Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS) pointed out that though Mr. Bharathi did not mean to be derogatory, the way he extended the debate was not good.
“He should have expressed regret for saying something unconsciously. But in a later interview to a television channel, he further deteriorated the debate by saying that his driver and cook were Dalits,” Dr. Lakshmanan pointed out.
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He felt that it was not just the Dravidian movement, “but all those engaging with self-respect, human dignity, democracy, Left and emancipatory politics, should be doubly conscious of their subconscious, where the relationships are stored in terms of master-slave, superior-inferior, giver-receiver and pure-impure”.
‘Extensively compromised’
“In the early stages of the Dravidian movement , when electoral politics was not a part of the agenda, sensitivity was very much there. When power politics, particularly electoral politics, occupied the centrestage, self-respect, which is the most important element underpinning the Dravidian movement , was extensively compromised,” Dr. Lakshmanan explained.
“What is disturbing is the failure of the DMK leadership to condemn Mr. Bharathi in no uncertain terms,” Prof. Lakshmanan said.
Writer Imayam, justifying Mr. Bharathi’s comments, said that but for the Justice Party and the Dravidian movement , Tamil Nadu would have “remained a backwater in social development, like Bihar and Odisha”.
“Tamil Nadu could take strides in the fields of science, education, health and transport because of the Dravidian movement. It set an example for the entire country by introducing reservation in education and employment,” said Mr. Imayam, who identifies himself as a writer on the Dravidian movement.
He said that if he could study, was able to wear a white dhoti and footwear, and sport a moustache and sideburns, the credit for it goes to the Dravidian movement.
