Maintaining that he will never interfere in the religious beliefs of individuals, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Monday said he opposed religion being used as a tool to divide Tamils. As divisive forces were increasing and attempting to divide Tamils on caste and religious lines, Tamil had the power to unite Tamils against such forces, he said.
“Only language has the power to defeat religious pretensions. When I say religion, I’m not referring to anyone’s religious faith. Religious faith is every individual’s belief, choice and right. We will not interfere in that. At the same time, we will oppose religion when it is used as a tool to divide Tamils,” Mr. Stalin said during his virtual address at an event organised by the Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America (FeTNA).
However, the same would not apply to caste, he said. “Caste is the primary factor dividing the Tamil community,” he said.
Claiming that only those who did not accept the concept of ‘Everything for Everyone’ were opposing the Dravidian Movement, Mr. Stalin said, “They were the ones who opposed this government as well as the word ‘Dravidam’.”
“The term ‘Dravida’, which once referred to a community and a regional expression and a language, has since become a reference to a political philosophy,” he said.
“It refers to a political philosophy which advocates ‘Everything for Everyone’. Those who oppose this [Dravida] are those who oppose ‘Everything for Everyone’ and the Dravidian Movement,” he said.
Though critics had been there for “a thousand years”, members of the Tamil community continued to live through their challenges, he said. During the function, the Ulaga Tamil Peedam Award was conferred posthumously on Thamizhkko Ilankumaranar for 2020 and Erode Thamizhanban for 2021.
