TIRUVANNAMALAI: Back in 2022, M Manikandan, belonging to the Kattunayakkan tribal community in Vayaloor village in Tiruvannamalai, was preparing for the TNPSC Group II examinations.
For years, his family members and villagers had been submitting petition after petition to collectors and revenue officials seeking caste certificates, as nearly 30 families in the village lacked the permanent record essential to gain access to higher education and employment.
Securing a government job was the dawn after the long, exhausting night for Manikandan, but the lack of a caste certificate hurt his prospects.
That year, Manikandan met advocate V Akathiyan, while the latter visited Vayaloor to survey tribal families without caste certificates. Fifteen days after the advocate’s visit, caste certificates were issued to all 30 families in the village, including Manikandan’s.
Securing caste certificates for members from tribal communities remains central to the work of Akathiyan. “That’s like the basic. If they get those, they can seek patta, housing, water facility, etc.,” he said.
The 35-year-old advocate, practising at the Madras High Court since 2021, takes it upon himself to visit and identify many such tribal communities, especially in Tiruvannamalai, Villupuram, Vellore and the surrounding districts, and makes efforts to help them obtain caste certificates.
In a few cases, he has assisted them in securing housing and basic amenities. He also appears in court for tribal people facing legal disputes.
“In many areas, I have seen tribal people being more concerned as they do not have anybody to speak for them. Even when anthropological studies confirm a person’s tribal identity, revenue officials sometimes delay issuing caste certificates. In such cases, I try to urge the officials to expedite the process,” said Akathiyan, who leverages the strong relationships he had cultivated over the years with high-ranking officials such as IAS officers and government secretaries to assist tribal people.
An incident, when Akathiyan was around 14 years old, in which his friend from a tribal community was denied school admission for not possessing a caste certificate, shaped how he approached the issue and has since been the catalyst for his efforts.
Though he was born in Royapuram in Chennai, Akathiyan grew up in Pillur, Villupuram. He was born into an SC family and both his parents worked as daily-wage labourers.
He completed his higher secondary education in Chidambaram while working at a tea shop. With the financial support from his well-wishers, he began pursuing law in 2013. Right from his UG years, he dedicated time to travel to numerous villages across the state to identify the issues of tribal communities.
The underlying issue that is harder to document is helping tribals claim their identity without shame. Akathiyan recalled an incident at the Villupuram collectorate, when he met a girl who was hurrying about with a file in her hands.
Despite scoring good marks, she was refused admission to a BA Economics course as she did not possess a caste certificate. When asked, the girl hesitated to identify herself as an Irular. Akathiyan said, “For the longest time, she said naanga vera jaathi (we belong to another caste). This disturbed me.”
He took her to the collector, who then contacted the college principal and asked that she be admitted, assuring that the certificate would be issued soon. She was granted admission the very day and her certificates were processed in 10 days, he added.
Akathiyan also urges the members of tribal communities to push back against slurs such as eli pudikaravanga (rat catchers) and paambu pudikaravanga (snake catchers) – terms often used to refer to their traditional occupations, intended as an attack on their dignity.
Besides helping secure caste certificates, Akathiyan arranges books, clothing and other essentials for tribal families, largely with the assistance of IAS officers and private companies through their CSR funding. He also works as the coordinator of ‘Pazhankudiyinar Makkal Iyakkam’ (Tribal Liberation Movement).
“He [Akathiyan] wanted all of us to be brought to the forefront,” said Manikandan, who now works as a government clerk. Three years after obtaining the caste certificate, Manikandan cleared exams and secured the job at the secretariat. He said his relatives still lack caste certificates, while expressing confidence that Akathiyan would assist them as well.
(Edited by Thamizhamudhan Sekar)