Governor R.N. Ravi has not taken any creative initiative for Tamil Nadu and has been attempting to add confusion to the political landscape in the State by lamenting every other day, but the DMK government is not at all bothered about it, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu said on Monday.
In a statement, Mr. Thennarasu referred to reported statements made by the Governor against the term ‘Dravidam’ in a function recently and further said: “If the Governor had explained how the term was divisive, we could have offered an elaborate explanation. If he has a generalised statement, it could only be considered a lament.”
The “Aryan political forces” that were wiped out of Tamil Nadu’s political landscape over the past 50 years were making the “Governor to provide a commentary to the worn out books on sanathanam”, the Minister charged. The Minister said, as descendants of former Chief Minister C.N. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi, they would not be bothered about the Governor lamenting at all.
The Governor saw red at the very word ‘Dravidam’ and had been continuously waging a war of words against the term, Mr. Thennarasu said. The ‘Dravidian model’ being followed by the DMK government was inclusive of the basic principles of the Dravidian movement - self-respect, social justice, equality, linguistic affinity, State autonomy and federalism - and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin was leading the government with a motto ‘Everything for All’, the Minister said and asked: “Where is divisiveness in all this?”
All the legislations and plans by the DMK’s Dravidian model was common for all and would not discriminate against anyone, Mr. Thennarasu contended. It was ‘Manu Smriti’, which had stated that those from Tamil Nadu were Shudras. In 44th of its 10th chapter, Thamizhagam is being called as ‘Dravidam’, he said.
“The Dravidian movement used the very word that was once used to insult Tamils as a political weapon. Governor R.N. Ravi has been making these statements against the term ‘Dravidam’, as he is angry that the Dravidian movement has established a platform for the rise and elevation of Tamil Nadu,” Mr. Thennarasu said.
The Minister went on to reiterate his claim that the Governor has been converting the Raj Bhavan as a political platform for sanathana and varnasramam forces. “The Governor has forgotten that he is part of the State administration and has been aligning with those against the government.”
