On 5 September 2025, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced with great fanfare that he had unveiled a portrait of E.V. Ramasamy Naicker (hailed as “Periyar” by his followers) at Oxford University, describing it as the “greatest honour” of his life.
தோட்டா தரணி அவர்களின் கைவண்ணத்தில் உருவாகி, #Oxford-இல் பெரியாரின் பேரனாக நான் திறந்து வைத்துள்ள அறிவுலக ஆசான் தந்தை பெரியாரின் உருவப் படம்!#CMStalinInOxford #Periyar #PeriyarAtOxford pic.twitter.com/9hgG48DHDA
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) September 5, 2025
The DMK ecosystem and sympathetic media outlets amplified this claim, portraying it as if Oxford University itself had formally recognised Periyar alongside figures like Gandhi or Mandela.
But a closer look at the facts exposes the exaggeration and propaganda behind this narrative.
What Really Happened At Oxford
The event was not an official Oxford University ceremony. It was a small academic conference titled the London Self-Respect Movement Conference, organised within a department of St. Antony’s College, Oxford – one among 39 autonomous colleges that make up the university. Two professors facilitated the programme.
To put it in perspective: it’s like a department of some college on OMR Road under Anna University unveiling a portrait of EVR. You wouldn’t call that “Anna University unveils Periyar’s photo.”
This was not a university-wide event endorsed by Oxford’s central administration. It was a departmental seminar, of the kind that happens almost daily in Oxford’s sprawling academic ecosystem.
The much-hyped “portrait unveiling” was not a permanent installation sanctioned by the university. Unlike the statues of Gandhi or Mandela, which were donated by alumni and officially approved by Oxford bodies, this was simply a framed picture displayed at a conference. There is no official record of EVR’s portrait being accepted into Oxford’s collections or archives.
No Mention On Oxford Platforms
Oxford maintains a central event-listing portal called Oxford Talks, where seminars and conferences are recorded. Searches of the site show no listing under EVR or so-called Periyar’s name or the supposed unveiling. Neither the official Oxford University website nor St. Antony’s College made any announcement about EVR.
In other words, the “Oxford honours Periyar” line is a creation of DMK’s spin machinery – a departmental event presented as a university-wide recognition.
Recycling A Familiar Playbook
This is not the first time such claims have been manufactured. In the past, similar narratives were floated about – Periyar UNESCO Award & Karunanidhi Austria Stamp. Let’s take a look at these.
EVR UNESCO Mandram Award
The so-called UNESCO award that was given to Dravidian ideologue EVR known as Periyar among followers has been one of the greatest lies peddled by the Dravidianists. For long, it has been said, written, and ingrained in the minds of people that EVR was conferred with the title of “Socrates of South-East Asia” by UNESCO. This had found its place even in school textbooks of Tamil Nadu and was even asked as a question in annual examinations and Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission exams. However, this award has turned out to be a sham. An email response from the UNESCO office in Delhi has confirmed that no such award/title was given to E.V. Ramasamy Naicker.
Even in the award, there exists a conspicuous error. The title of the award says “Socrates of South-East Asia”. India does not fall under the South-East Asia grouping. The Southeast nations include Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. India comes under South Asia and not South-East Asia.
For more than 40 years, this lie has been peddled with several articles and research papers on EVR written based on this lie. None in the media or those belonging to the ‘intellectual’ circle who speak of facts has ever opened their mouths about this blatant lie peddled.
Then who gave the award to EVR? It was none other than late former DMK leader M. Karunanidhi in the presence of Dravida Kazhagam President K. Veeramani.
There you go guys !
UNESCO Mandram Award Template 🤣
P1 – Socrates of South East Asia
P2- Karl Marx of South East Asia pic.twitter.com/kGpLSRhzWo— Tinku Venkatesh | ಟಿಂಕು ವೆಂಕಟೇಶ್ (@tweets_tinku) July 23, 2020
Austria Stamp For Karunanidhi
In 2013, the Austrian postal service released a limited-edition postage stamp to mark DMK chief M. Karunanidhi’s 90th birthday on 3 June that year. The stamp, priced at 90 euros, features Karunanidhi’s portrait alongside the DMK’s red-and-black party flag and the numeral 90. According to Don Ashok, a businessman with ties to Austria, the initiative was taken by a few individuals who requested the postal service to honour Karunanidhi for his contributions to politics, cinema and literature. He described it as a gesture of affection from party supporters worldwide.
Tribals Praising MK Stalin
In June 2025, a viral video was shared on social media and pushed by Dravidianist mouthpiece Kalaignar Seithigal claiming Tanzanian tribals were “spontaneously” praising Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin – this was later exposed as a paid PR stunt.
However, upon closer inspection, it emerged that these “greetings” were anything but spontaneous or sincere. A fact-check revealed that for a small fee, roughly ₹4,000 or $40, anyone can pay for a group of individuals in Tanzania or elsewhere in Africa to perform a short video message with a photo or poster of their choosing. A fact check handle exposed the DMK’s propaganda drama.
Websites like africanjoyflix.com, wishesmadevisual.com, africanbirthdaywishes.com, and wishfromafrica.net openly provide these services, allowing clients to select a group and script their messages, all for a flat fee.
Furthermore, there was no credible or independent information suggesting that the people in the video were aware of, much less appreciative of, the initiatives implemented by the DMK government in Tamil Nadu. Dr. Sukumar’s supposed role in this production also stands unsubstantiated.
The Oxford portrait story fits neatly into this pattern: creating an illusion of global recognition to bolster Dravidian icons domestically.
Political and Ideological Packaging
The speech Stalin delivered at Oxford was heavy with symbolism, describing himself as Periyar’s “grandson in ideals,” claiming Periyar had “fed self-respect to a whole race,” and presenting the portrait unveiling as proof of Periyar’s global relevance.
But the reality is far less grand: a portrait unveiled at a conference room, without any institutional sanction from Oxford.
The propaganda value, however, lies in the contrast between perception and fact. To a Tamil Nadu audience, “Oxford honours Periyar” sounds like historic validation. To the global academic community, it was just another departmental seminar.
Dravidian Model Lies
Why exaggerate such events? Because the Dravidian establishment thrives on projecting its ideology as globally validated. By inflating departmental seminars into university honours, it seeks to manufacture prestige and legitimacy.
So, in a nutshell:
Oxford University did not honour EVR.
No official portrait was installed.
No record exists in Oxford’s archives or announcements.
What happened was simple: two professors organised a departmental seminar where a framed picture was unveiled. What followed was propaganda – a small academic event blown up into an “Oxford recognition” story to serve political optics back home.
Once again, the Dravidian establishment has shown how it thrives on projection, not reality.
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