Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday heaped praises on E.V. Ramasamy Naicker (known as Periyar by his followers), while expressing his displeasure over the issue of saffron paint being thrown at E.V.Ramasamy statue in Coimbatore.
In his tweet he said “No amount of hate can ever deface a giant.”
எவ்வளவு தீவிரமான வெறுப்பும் ஒரு மகத்தான தலைவனை களங்கப்படுத்த முடியாது
No amount of hate can ever deface a giant. pic.twitter.com/Y5ZBNuCfl2
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 18, 2020
On Friday, a member alleged to be from Bharat Sena was said to have thrown saffron paint (red oxide) at the EVR statue in Sundarapuram. The person identified as Arun Krishnan (21) along with other members of the said organization turned up at Podanur police station and took responsibility for the act. He had said that he committed the act in response to the disparaging comments made by Karuppar Koottam gang about Hindu God Murugan and Kandha Sashti Kavasam.
While none of the leaders from the DMK, Congress, MDMK, VCK condemned Karuppar Koottam for their abusive videos on Hindu Gods and Hindus, they pounced immediately on Friday to express condemnation over the EVR statue row. Except for the natural outrage by BJP and other Hindu organizations, only Dairy Development Minister K.T. Rajendra Balaji of the AIADMK had come down against the Karuppar Koottam.
In light of this Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on July 18 tweeted with a picture of The Hindu article about the attack on EVR statue. Rahul Gandhi in his attempt to placate the DMK and other opposition parties now finds himself adoring the man who opposed Congress and Gandhi tooth and nail.
Unlike Rahul Gandhi, E.V. Ramasamy was not so sweet to the Congress. There has not been a single leader who has criticized Gandhi rabidly and unjustly as EVR did. He had even called for the ‘annihilation of Gandhi’ and ‘annihilation of Congress’ along with the ‘annihilation of Brahmins’.
EVR in 1927 had said “My friend Ramanathan and I told the Mahatma (when we met him) that three tasks had to be completed for India attaining independence and self-respect. The first would be the destruction of the Congress party, the second the destruction of Hindu religion and the third the destruction of the domination of Brahmins. The third would automatically happen when the first two tasks were completed. Gandhi’s response was not to our satisfaction.”
EVR was someone who opposed the very idea of India and was dead against Mahatma Gandhi. He had called for a Dravidistan along the lines of Pakistan and also tried to collude with Muhammad Ali Jinnah for the same. However, Jinnah saw him as a threat to his own plans and showed EVR the finger.
In 1957, he had called for the burning of pictures of Mahatma Gandhi. He said
We were cheated by Gandhi. Our land (the Tamil land) has been enslaved to the Northerners and Brahmins by Gandhi. It is because of Gandhi that people lost all great qualities they had…(and) it is now impossible to live without being immoral, dishonest, deceitful and traitorous
This is what he had to say about Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination. In a speech made in December 1973, he said
These are our five principles—annihilation of God, annihilation of religion, annihilation of Gandhi, annihilation of Congress and annihilation of Brahmins…Before we could annihilate Gandhi, the Brahmins did the task for us”
Though he expressed his condolences when Mahatma Gandhi died, he resorted to calling Gandhi names again.
In a rally held on 4-11-1973, Periyar said
Watch out for the people who are saying ‘Jai congress’&’Jai Gandhi’ they are implicitly accepting they are bastard sons of paarpans (brahmins). They are accepting that they are lowborn.
Today, Congress and its leaders find themselves in a position praising the same man who had been unkind to them, just to cater to the sentiments of their alliance partners.