CHENNAI/TIRUCHY: The presence of at least four senior leaders of the AIADMK at Sunday’s conference of Lord Murugan’s devotees organised by Hindu Munnani in Madurai, during which a short video clip that showed the Dravidian movement and its leaders ‘Periyar’ E V Ramasamy and C N Annadurai in a poor light, put the opposition party in a sticky situation, leading to damage control measures on Monday.
A statement posted on its social media handle, without attribution to the party’s general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami or any other senior leaders, said the leaders of the party took part in the conference purely in their personal capacity as devotees of Lord Muruga. Stating that the Dravidian ideology ran in AIADMK’s blood, the party said its general secretary extended greetings in a democratic spirit to the conference organised to express devotion to God. It said the AIADMK did not accept any resolution passed, or pledges taken at that conference.
Former minister Sellur K Raju, who attended the conference with former ministers R B Udhayakumar, KT Rajenthra Bhalaji, and Kadambur Raju, told TNIE that he had no knowledge of such speeches (against Periyar and Anna) being played. Bhalaji, who spoke to the media in Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district, expressed regret that such a video was played.
“It is always better to highlight their (leaders’) positive contributions rather than engage in unnecessary criticisms that only draw unwanted debates,” he said. Meanwhile, former AIADMK minister S P Velumani, who drew criticism from the ruling DMK, for attending an RSS event on Monday, told the media that he went to participate in the Perur Aadheenam Santhalinga Ramasamy Adigalar’s centenary event and not an RSS function. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat was the special guest at the event.
On him and his elder brother presenting a statue of Lord Murugan and a vel (spear), Velumani said it was done since Bhagwat had visited the assembly constituency he represented. He said AIADMK will form alliances with many parties for the elections but will not compromise on its policies. A section of AIADMK functionaries and cadres from minority communities in Tiruchy and Pudukkottai, who TNIE spoke to on Monday, expressed their disappointment that the party’s senior leaders took part in the Hindu Munnani conference.
“This was not a neutral religious gathering like festivals. It was organised by groups with a history of playing polarising politics. Our leaders should have avoided it,” said a Muslim functionary from Thiruverumbur. Another leader from Beemanagar said, even while campaigning for the conference, the organisers said it was to protect against ‘Islamisation’ of the Thiruparankundram hill. They are just using AIADMK for their agenda, he alleged.
(With inputs from R Kirubakaran, M Saravanan and M Harini)