With DMK MP Tiruchi Siva’s lies about former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Kamaraj (referred to as Kamarajar out of respect), making the headlines over the week, there are some more aspects of how DMK and especially the patriarch Karunanidhi insulted Kamarajar that need to be discussed.
Mocked In Life, Denied Honour In Death
When Kamaraj was alive, the DMK’s mouthpiece Murasoli ran cartoons mocking his appearance, including his skin tone. In death, the insult was worse. On 2 October 1975, Gandhi Jayanti, Kamaraj passed away. A former Chief Minister, freedom fighter, architect of the mid-day meal scheme, and often called the “Kingmaker” of Indian politics, Kamaraj was expected to be honoured with a burial at the Marina, home to the memorial of Karunanidhi’s mentor, C.N. Annadurai.
But Karunanidhi, then the Chief Minister, reportedly refused the request. While some Congress figures like Tindivanam Ramamurthy and A. Gopanna said leaders such as Pazha Nedumaran and Kannadasan had pressed for a Marina burial as reported in The Hindu, Karunanidhi denied it, citing the difficulty of maintaining memorials near the sea.
This justification rings hollow today. Marina later housed the memorials of MGR, Jayalalithaa, and Karunanidhi himself. No such “erosion concerns” were raised then. The real reason appears obvious: Kamaraj was a national icon, not a Dravidian one. His stature didn’t suit Karunanidhi’s political narrative.
Conflicting Claims, Convenient Amnesia
Some journalists and politicians later attempted to reframe the episode, claiming no demand had been made for a Marina burial and that Karunanidhi, in fact, led the state funeral out of respect. Others, like Pazha Nedumaran, the then TNCC secretary, stated that Congress planned to conduct the funeral at Sathyamurthi Bhavan, but Karunanidhi offered Gandhi Mandapam in Guindy as an alternative, as reported in TNIE. Nedumaran apparently said, “Congressmen decided to perform the last rites at Sathyamurthi Bhavan here but it was the then Chief Minister Karunanidhi, who offered land at Gandhi Mandapam to build a memorial for Kamaraj.”
Gandhi mandapam as consolation prize for passing away on Gandhi Jayanti?
So, which is it? Was a Marina burial demanded and denied? Or did the DMK proactively offer Guindy as a mark of honour? The historical record has been twisted conveniently — sometimes to attack, sometimes to defend.
What remains undisputed is this: Kamaraj, despite his towering legacy, was denied Marina burial by the Karunanidhi government. That decision, whether rooted in vendetta or political insecurity, was an insult.
The Hypocrisy In 2018
Fast-forward to August 2018. Karunanidhi dies. He is not the sitting Chief Minister. By his own standard, that only incumbent CMs deserved Marina, he should not have been buried there. Yet, the DMK demanded a Marina grave, and the AIADMK government initially denied the request.
In a press release, Chief Secretary Girija Vaidyanathan cited legal obstacles and the fact that Karunanidhi was not a serving CM. The government’s counsel even reminded the Madras High Court that Karunanidhi had himself denied Kamaraj the same honour, setting the very precedent now being challenged.
But after a late-night legal battle, the High Court ruled in DMK’s favour. Karunanidhi was laid to rest beside Annadurai, at the Marina. No erosion, no legal impediment, no maintenance woes.
The message seemed unmistakable: rules only apply to your opponents. What was too much for Kamaraj was just right for Karunanidhi.
A Memorial For Some, Not All
Gandhi Mandapam, where Kamaraj was cremated, remains the site for national leaders like Rajaji and Bhaktavatsalam. In contrast, Marina became the pantheon of Dravidian leaders. This segregation, though unspoken, exposes the DMK’s selective reverence.
A freedom fighter, a national builder, and a Chief Minister who transformed Tamil Nadu’s political and educational landscape denied the honour accorded to regional leaders of lesser stature. That is the legacy of Karunanidhi’s politics of memory.
If hypocrisy had a name, it would be the Karunanidhi family itself.
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