The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu consistently carries out its efforts to court the minority communities in the state. The ministers (including the HR&CE Minister) actively participate in meetings with minority groups to solidify their vote bank, a strategy that is well-known to the citizens of Tamil Nadu. For example, immediately after their victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, DMK MPs, especially those from the party’s first families, met with George Antonysamy, the controversial Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Madras-Mylapore, who had written an article to influence voters using religious sentiments advocating Christian support for the DMK in the recent Lok Sabha elections.
Against this backdrop, on 16 July 2024, DMK Minister for Milk & Dairy Development, Mano Thangaraj, attended the All-India Federation of Christian Churches’ Second Conference of Pastors as the chief guest. The conference, held at the Jesus Calls Prayer House in Vanagaram, Chennai, reaffirmed the Dravidian agenda of glorifying British colonial rule and the role of Christian missionaries during the Indian freedom struggle.
DMK Minister Mano Thangaraj began his speech at the conference by expressing gratitude to the pastors present, quoting a Bible verse: “For Kings and All Those in Authority, That We May Live Peaceful and Quiet Lives.” He thanked them for their prayers and then shifted focus to his main agenda, extolling the contributions of Christian missionaries.
He urged the Christian community to understand and teach the history of how Christianity arrived in the Indian subcontinent and the impact it had. Thangaraj then recounted the pre-independence era of India, highlighting the caste-based discrimination that existed. He specifically spoke about the Thol Seelai Porattam (Upper Cloth Revolt), a significant cultural movement led by women of the Nadar community fighting for their right to cover their breasts. He shamefully credited Reverend Mede with championing this cause, claiming that the Christian missionary’s support was instrumental in opposing Brahmanical supremacy in the Travancore state.
Continuing to spread historical half-truths, DMK Minister Thangaraj falsely credited the abolition of the practice of Sati to Christian missionary Governor-General of British India, Lord William Bentinck, contradicting historical facts. Sati was a ritual where a widow immolated herself on her husband’s funeral pyre. Thangaraj also attributed the progress in widow remarriage to another missionary, John Baptiste Trincal, a French Jesuit.
Thangaraj emphasized that all Christians should understand this history, acknowledging the suffering endured to create a more equitable India. The he advised the community to embrace unity and avoid caste discrimination within them, calling it a shame and stating that such issues are not addressed in the Bible. Thangaraj said, “It is my humble request that if we come as Christians we should learn to be together. If it comes to a Christian, you should not talk about the caste structure, it is an ugliness and a shame. Nowhere in the Bible is it taught.” He also urged pastors to stay informed about politics, Subtly suggesting DMK’s political activities said, “I will not say that you (pastors) should take part in politics, but it is my opinion that you should be aware of it. Apart from that, the congregation should also keep the people informed.”
He concluded his speech by contrasting the freedom of worship in the USA with the situation in India, sharing a story about a Catholic pastor who recounted the freedoms of religion in the USA during a flight with Minister Mano Thangaraj. Thangaraj said, “The Hindus living there (USA) are one percent. All of them went from India. They have the right to build temples wherever they want, the number of Muslims who can be there is very small. We all know the Twin Towers, when the Twin Towers were destroyed by Islamic terrorists, there were so many deaths. But after that, the government allowed a big mosque to be built near it, because there is freedom of religion, secularism prevails there.”
He then went on to mock Rishi Sunak, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, for following the Indian cultural tradition of bowing to elders for blessings. This part of his speech was widely condemned by netizens on the internet.
Although the DMK’s strategy to win the minority vote is quite transparent, spreading falsehoods to support this agenda is quite unethical. For example, they falsely attribute the struggle for Nadar women’s liberation in the Thol Seelai Porattam and the abolition of Sati to Christian missionary.
Contrary to the minister’s agenda the true historical account says it otherwise that it was the Nadar women who started the protest, which began with the Nadar women’s courageous act of defiance against the breast tax imposed by the authorities in Travancore province. It is to be noted that Nangeli, a brave Nadar woman who cut off her breasts to protest the tax, has become a legendary figure in this struggle. The Mulachiparambu area, associated with this historic protest, is now a revered site of worship.
Likewise, the abolition of Sati is properly credited to Indian Hindu reformers such as Ram Mohan Roy. Similarly, throughout the Indian freedom struggle, there were many Hindu reformers who worked to end discriminatory practices and bring about social reform. It is a well-established fact that Christian missionaries and the British Empire were more interested in conversions rather than genuine community reform. This is underscored by the 1858 proclamation by Lord Canning at the Durbar in Allahabad, where he declared that the British would not interfere with Indian customs and traditions, primarily to maintain their rule.
Other Instances Of DMK Leaders Glorifying Christian Missionaries And British Rule
DMK MLA Appavu
DMK MLA and Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M. Appavu had declared that the MK Stalin-led government in the state was formed by Christians and for Christians.
Appavu openly admitted that the DMK came to power because of the ‘fasting’ and support of Roman Catholic Christians and that Chief Minister MK Stalin acknowledges that the DMK government was installed with the help of Christians.
“I frequently tell this. This is ‘your’ government. A government that has been formed by ‘you’. A government that has been formed because of your ‘fasting’. A government that has been brought by your prayers and wishes to the Lord. This is a government for ‘you’.” the DMK MLA said while addressing a gathering of Catholic Christians on the occasion of St. Paul’s Seminary held in Trichy on June 29, 2022.
He further added that Christianity and Christian priests were the root causes for the formation of the DMK government which talks about ‘social justice’ and ‘Dravida Model’.
DMK Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan
Tamil Nadu Finance Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan hailed Christian Missionaries as torchbearers of social justice who had contributed to the development of the region.
“Be it in India or Tamil Nadu or even Madurai, the contribution of American missionaries is not always talked about much. The link between Madurai and American missionaries goes back to 1881 or even beyond. They contributed to the overall development of the region by providing educational and medical facilities, though they were not the colonising power here,” Palanivel Thiagarajan was quoted saying in The Hindu.
Palanivel Thiagarajan also said that the work of American Christian missionaries across the world championed the cause of people’s welfare, be it the civil rights movement in the USA or the Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu.
MK Stalin
CM Stalin himself had said that his government was formed because of Christians while participating in the platinum jubilee celebrations of the Church of South India in September 2021.
“The government that is there in Tamil Nadu today is one that has been created by you. I won’t call it as my government. This is our government.”, CM Stalin said.
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