The question gains relevance against the backdrop of Dalit leader, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president and Chidambaram MP Thol Thirumavalavan's recent declaration--wasn't there a tone of frustration?-- that a Dalit can never become the chief minister of Tamil Nadu.
Thirumavalavan was addressing a protest rally in Chennai on Wednesday when he made the assertion.
The VCK is an ally of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu.
The MK Stalin-led government unsurprisingly has no Dalit senior minister.
Thirumavalavan's statement do not stem from frustration. One has to look into it as a "social analysis," writer and MP D Ravikumar told TNIE.
The fact is that states like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and UP were lucky enough to have a Dalit CM. But in Tamil Nadu which claims to be the land of social icons like Periyar, Dalits were not able to get the post of even a senior minister during the consecutive rules of the AIADMK and the DMK. Tamil Nadu had a Dalit, P Kakkan, as home minister (the only Dalit home minister of the state) in the Congress government led by Kamaraj. That was history.
"In states where Dalits were able to become Chief Ministers the Dalits are a consolidated vote bank. In Tamil Nadu, especially after the BJP started to make inroads in the state, Dalits remain fragmented ," Ravikumar noted.
Social Justice not on their agenda
That social justice is not on the agenda of the two leading political parties, the DMK and the AIADMK, is what has hindered a Dalit leader from getting a plum portfolio in Tamil Nadu. Moreover, these parties were found to be lacking in inner-party democracy. The Election Commission, to a certain extent, is to be blamed. Because the main criteria for registering a political party is to hold party elections which is merely ceremonial and does not ensure democracy in a party, Ravikumar pointed out.
Anbumani Ramadoss' claim
In the meantime, responding to Thirumavalavan's declaration that a Dalit can never become chief minister in Tamil Nadu, PMK president and Rajya Sabha MP Anbumani Ramadoss announced that if Dalits extend support to the PMK in the 2026 assembly election and if the party manages to win, he would consider projecting a person from SC community as chief minister of Tamil Nadu.
In reply, Ravikumar said that as an MP of Viluppuram he would, first and foremost, request Anbumani Ramadoss and the PMK to drop the casteist agenda and work in harmony with the people for the development of northern districts.
Ravikumar added that it's true that PMK's bylaw prescribes that the party general secretary should be from the Dalit community and the treasurer, from a minority community. The bylaw was drafted by eminent people including Dalits during the launch of the party in 1989. But since the Dharmapuri violence of 2012 (Ilavarasan case) the PMK has been seen implementing a casteist agenda.
Ilavarasan case
A young Vanniyar (the caste which Ramadoss represents) woman Divya and a Dalit youth Ilavarasan fall in love and plan to marry against the "societal" wishes. Unfortunately for the young couple, Divya's father dies by suicide. Following this, caste flames were stoked by the PMK. At least 268 Dalit houses were set fire to by a Vanniyar caste (which Anbumani Ramadoss represents) mob. The political pressure from the PMK and societal constraints forces Ilavarasan to allegedly die by suicide.
The year was 2012.
"It was widely believed that Divya’s father’s death too was orchestrated to provide fodder for the PMK’s political attempt to consolidate Vanniyar support by targeting the Dalits and inter-caste marriage," stated a CPI (M-L) Liberation feature dated August 12, 2013.
"PMK leaders have declared that Dalit youth are wearing jeans, T-shirts, sunglasses, riding motorcycles and wielding mobile phones are ‘luring’ girls of the Vanniyar and other ‘intermediary’ castes. A ‘Campaign Against Inter-Caste Marriage Movement’ has been launched, backed by the PMK, not only in Dharmapuri but in other districts, too. Young educated professional men from the ‘intermediary’ castes are being mobilized in this ‘movement’. These youth are aggressive on social media as well...," the article added.
DMK and social justice
The Dalit movements are unhappy with the DMK government for failing to address issues close to their hearts. Particularly, the indifference of the government towards incidents like what happened in Vengaivayal village where human excreta was found in a water tank used by the Dalits in December 2022 has distanced the Dalits from the ruling party. Unfortunately, Vengaivaiyal is not an isolated incident. Discrimination on the basis of caste, the so-called "honour killing," and deaths of workers while cleaning sewers and septic tanks have almost become normal in the state. It would not be an exaggeration to note that the party in power appears indifferent to the plight of the Dalits.
To sum up, the land of Periyar is not yet ready for a Dalit senior minister, forget a chief minister.
