The BJP, having destroyed the Periyar statue in Tamil Nadu, should be taken to task for more than just vandalism. Periyar, for not only Tamilians but for all of south India, is the definition of a person who stood up for our culture, for our traditions, and for socialism. He stood up against the north Indian (Aryan) influence, trying to dilute and end our Dravidian culture and tradition.
We are at a crossroads, in this country. It’s time to finally ask the difficult questions. Are the politics of the centre, which is actually synonymous with Hindi heartland politics, ready to accommodate us in the national picture? Are they ready or even willing to respect us, and more importantly value us?
As we can see in the active push for making Hindi a national language, as we can see in the riots in Karnataka, the Hindi heartland politicians, are trying to push their agenda. They don’t know, neither do they want to know, about our culture. They do not respect it. It’s time we start demanding that respect. It’s time we start demanding that respect for our languages, our architecture, our history and our leaders.
It is sad when educated people like H Raja act traitorously to the Dravidian cause. When he called upon party goons to destroy Periyar statue, he not only betrayed his people but all of us Dravidians. He betrayed our culture, he betrayed our identity.
In most socio-economic parameters, the South Indian states are by far better than the North-Indian states. If we analyse deeper, it will seem they are a liability to us in this country. In simpler words, we are carrying their problems on our shoulders. So isn’t it time that we make the politicians of the Hindi heartland aware of that? Isn’t it time, we take advantage to demand more power and respect?
We can fight this. This is not a fight for just a statue, but it is a fight for our identities, it is a fight for culture, it is a fight for our leaders. It is a fight for the Dravidian movement.
The election is coming in Karnataka, and we can’t let the BJP win if we want to preserve our culture. If we want our successive generations to yet know Kannada, Tulu, Tamil, Malayalam, etc, the fight starts now. If we want to retain our temples, our stories, our literature, the fight starts now. If we want our grandchildren to know who Sree Narayana guru, Periyar, EMS Nambooripad were, the fight starts now.
It’s time that the Hindi heartland politicians start to respect us, South Indians. If they don’t, it’s time we start making them pay for it.