Why are Dalits looking up to VCK, and not Congress, in Tamil Nadu, asks CWC member K. Raju

All India Congress Committee Working Committee member and national co-ordinator (SC, ST, OBC and Minorities Dept), K. Raju, on Tuesday said Congress party should aspire to organise a massive public rally (similar in scale) like the one organised by Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi founder and Chidambaram M.P. , Thol. Thirumavalavan, recently in Tiruchi named ‘Vellum Sananayagam, in the next couple of years.

Speaking at a training programme on Dalit Rights organised by the TN Congress SC department head M.P. Ranjan Kumar, Mr. Raju said, “An organisation has no value if it is confined to your own offices. Community outreach is important and it will happen only if you are able to identify the issues faced by community and address those problems. Whenever Dalits are in trouble, they should think about reaching out to the SC department. Are they looking to the district committee president or block president or are they reaching out to some other agency? We have to bring about this change.”

He threw another challenge at Mr Ranjan Kumar, and urged him to organise a public rally like the one organised by the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi in Tiruchi last month.

“A few days back I came to know that Mr Thirumavalavan has organised a massive meeting of Dalits. Can SC department...after 3 or 4 years, tell us confidently that they can also organise a meeting of that level that Thirumavalavan has done? That is the test of your success. Why are the Dalits not looking at Congress party and why they don’t have confidence or trust the Congress party that has given the Constitution. What is the great confidence that VCK is giving to them that Congress is not giving them. SC department should think through this issue,” he asked.

All India Congress Committee Scheduled Caste wing president Rajesh Lilothia said the Congress party has always given space to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in India, which has become clear once again with the elevation of Congress president Mallaikarjun Kharge from a mere block president to the president of the All India Congress Committee.

Mr. Lilothia also said the intention of the Congress party to empower Dalits in the State has been further demonstrated by the rise of K. Selvaperunthagai, who has grown step-by-step in the party, “by showing good performance first as State SC wing president, then Congress legislative party leader” and now as the State president, and urged the State SC department to support and stand by him at the social justice convention.

“Wherever there are atrocities against the SC/ST people across India, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi have been voicing their opinion strongly,” he said.

Mr. Raju said the SC department must play an important role in building the organisation.

“Organisation becomes strong only if it meets regularly at the various levels. I keep telling this at every forum of the Congress party – it claims it has got organisation but it is devoid of the real strength that is needed to stand as an organisation. The Congress committees don’t meet regularly, they don’t allow everyone to talk about various issues or plan what to do for the next month. This is why I keep complaining that Congress party has failed to build deliberative forums,” he said.

Mr. Raju said that Pradesh Congress Committee president holds a lot of power and it is not distributed across the organisation.

“[Congress leader] Rahul Gandhi keeps saying that the real leader is the one who creates hundred more leaders. Unfortunately, in Congress, leaders bring down other leaders (potential). My appeal to you is to hold monthly meetings and invite everyone, discuss issues, take decisions and implement those decisions,” he said.

The two day training program will feature speeches from various congress leaders and rights activists.