DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva while speaking in the Parliament questioned what he described as the neglect of Tamil freedom fighters in North India, framing it as a historical injustice.
Raising the issue, he asked whether there were roads or streets in North India named after Tamil icons such as VO Chidambaram Pillai or Mahakavi Subramania Bharati. He further questioned whether people outside Tamil Nadu even knew who Veerapandiya Kattabomman was. Tiruchi Siva also claimed that Tamils were ignored despite their contributions to the freedom struggle and asserted that it was a Tamil, Chempakaraman, who first coined the slogan “Jai Hind.”
He said, “Is there anywhere in North India a VO Chidambaranar Road? Is there a Bharatiyar Street? Does anyone there even know who Veerapandiya Kattabomman is? Please tell me, why were we ignored? The question to ask is this: we were the ones who first coined the slogan “Jai Hind” – it was Chempakaraman who did that.”
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— Ashvathaman Allimuthu (@asuvathaman) December 12, 2025
The remarks were projected as a defence of Tamil pride and a call for national recognition of Tamil freedom fighters.
The Record The DMK Does Not Mention
While Tiruchi Siva’s questions drew attention in Parliament, they have also prompted scrutiny of the DMK’s own actions in Tamil Nadu, particularly when it had full control over naming public institutions, erecting statues, and institutionalising remembrance.
VO Chidambaram Pillai And The Tirunelveli Bus Stand
There is no dispute anywhere in India about VO Chidambaram Pillai’s stature. He is widely recognised as a pioneering leader of the Swadeshi movement and a central figure in Tamil Nadu’s freedom struggle. Tirunelveli, in particular, is inseparably associated with him, he practised law there, organised labour there, and it was there that public protests erupted after his arrest.
Yet, when a new modern bus stand was constructed in Tirunelveli under the Centre-funded Smart City scheme, the DMK government chose to name it the Periyar Bus Stand, after E.V. Ramasamy.
This decision was taken despite public demands that the bus stand be named after VO Chidambaram Pillai.
The choice raised an obvious question: what historical or personal connection did EV Ramasamy have with Tirunelveli district that outweighed that of VOC? The DMK has never provided a convincing answer.
Tirunelveli’s Freedom Struggle Legacy
Tirunelveli occupies a distinct place in the freedom movement. During protests following VOC’s arrest, Sub-Collector Ashe ordered firing on demonstrators, killing four people. In retaliation, revolutionary Vanchinathan assassinated Ashe. This episode is central to Tamil revolutionary history in the Indian national movement.
Despite this legacy, the most prominent modern public infrastructure in Tirunelveli was named not after VOC, but after EV Ramasamy Naicker (hailed as ‘Periyar’ by his followers) highlighting a pattern where Dravidian ideological icons are prioritised over freedom fighters.
Jai Hind Chempakaraman: Invoked, But Not Honoured
Tiruchi Siva’s reference to “Jai Hind” being coined by Chempakaraman has also drawn attention to another contradiction. If Jaihind Chempakaraman is indeed as significant as claimed, having influenced Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and participated in revolutionary activities, then the obvious question arises: where is his public memorialisation in Tamil Nadu?
Across the State, statues of EV Ramasamy are ubiquitous – at junctions, traffic circles, and public spaces, you name it! By contrast, Jai Hind Chempakaraman has just one statue, located near the Gandhi Mandapam complex in Chennai, an area where statues are placed away from every day public visibility.
But such a great warrior – who, during the Second World War, brought the ship Emden from Germany, carried out a surgical strike here, attacked only the British and made them tremble, is forgotten.
Even at the Chennai High Court complex, near the spot where Chempakaraman threw a bomb during the freedom struggle, there exists only a small memorial stone. There is no prominent statue that would prompt public curiosity or historical awareness.
Demands have been raised for a statue to be installed at that very site so that people can learn why that location matters. That demand, too, has not been acted upon.
A Pattern, Not An Accident
The pattern extends beyond individuals. Tamil freedom fighters such as VO Chidambaram Pillai, Jaihind Chempakaraman, Kuyili, and Mahakavi Bharatiyar travelled across India, worked with leaders from other regions, and grounded their struggle in Indian nationalism.
Yet the ideological framework the DMK promotes, Dravidianism, has historically distanced itself from Indian nationalism. EV Ramasamy himself opposed the freedom movement and rejected the idea of Indian independence as unnecessary.
This contradiction becomes sharper when DMK leaders speak of honouring freedom fighters while continuing to centre public memory around a figure who openly rejected the freedom struggle.
Recognition Outside Tamil Nadu Vs Silence Within
Contrary to the impression suggested in Parliament, Mahakavi Bharathiyar has been honoured outside Tamil Nadu, including street names in Delhi and academic chairs in universities abroad, sponsored with central support. Tamil names appear on signage in several parts of North India, and Bharathiyar’s legacy is acknowledged nationally.
The more uncomfortable question, however, is why Tamil Nadu itself, under decades of DMK rule, has failed to consistently honour its own freedom fighters in prominent public spaces.
A Question That Turns Inward
Tiruchi Siva asked Parliament why Tamil freedom fighters were ignored elsewhere. The record suggests a more immediate question: why have they been marginalised at home?
If the DMK had named major institutions after VO Chidambaram Pillai, erected visible statues of Jaihind Chempakaraman, and foregrounded nationalist freedom fighters rather than ideological icons, its moral authority on this issue would have been stronger.
Instead, the contrast remains stark. Tamil freedom fighters are invoked rhetorically, but Dravidian ideologues dominate Tamil Nadu’s public landscape.
And that contradiction, more than anything said in Parliament, continues to define the debate.
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