DMK president M.K. Stalin on Saturday demanded the removal of noted archaeologist R. Nagaswami from a committee of the Central Institute of Classical Tamil (CICT) tasked with selecting scholars for the President’s Award.
Mr. Nagaswami was “anti-Tamil and distorted Tamil culture and history according to his whim”, Mr. Stalin alleged.
‘Belittled Thiruvalluvar’
In a statement, the DMK leader said Mr. Nagaswami had belittled poet-saint Thiruvalluvar by claiming that the Tirukkural had its roots in the Vedas.
Mr. Stalin said the Centre had already undermined the institute by not providing it adequate funds. “It has not been able to do any research in the last five years. It has also stopped the award instituted in the name of Kalaignar [former CM Karunanidhi],” he claimed.
He said the Centre had constituted the award committee since the Lok Sabha election was approaching. “Its objective is to cheat the people of Tamil Nadu. The BJP government is suppressing reports on the findings [of excavations] in Adichanallur and Keezhadi,” he alleged.
