01-07-2007, 06:20 AM
From Today's Asian Age
Karuna defends Periyar statues
By Our Special Correspondent
Chennai, Jan. 6: Erecting statues of "fully clad" Tamil rationalist leader E.V. Ramasamy "Periyar" in front of temples is far less objectionable than having nude idols of Hindu gods installed within, according to Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi.
Answering a question at a press conference on Saturday on whether he supported the installation of statues of Periyar, an atheist, in the vicinity of Hindu temples, the chief minister said, <b>"Periyarâs statue depicts him wearing shirt and dhoti. But some idols inside the temples are nude. What do you do with such idols?"</b>
Continuing, he gave two instances of deities being depicted in the nude in two famous temples of Tamil Nadu â in Chidambaram and Tiruvarur. "For instance, you have the Vallabha Ganapathi idol at Chidambaram temple and the Utchishta Ganapathi idol at Tiruvarur, where even the priests are so embarrassed that they keep the idols covered with pieces of cloth."
Mr Karunanidhi, himself a follower of Periyar, pointed out that the late rationalist leader was a Hindu and also an atheist. "Is there not a space for atheism within Hindu religion itself," he asked.
The chief minister had earlier made similar remarks, but with reference to the various smaller statues adorning the gopurams (temple towers) of some temples which depicted Kama Sutra postures. He had then said that Hindus should not object to Periyarâs statue after having accepted such erotic representations on their temples.
This time, Mr Karunanidhiâs remarks refer to deities within the temples. His earlier observations had been criticised by Hindu groups and the BJP, which were upset already by the installation of a statue of Periyar in the temple town of Srirangam in December 2006.
Periyarâs followers in the Dravidar Kazhagam, founded by him as a social reformist, anti-Hindu, anti-Brahmin movement in the first half of the 20th century, had installed his statue in front of the famous Sri Ranganathaswamy temple at Srirangam, near Tiruchi, one of the leading Vaishnavite shrines in the country. The BJP and Hindu groups reacted in anger, and a few activists damaged the concrete statue early in December.
The suspects were arrested and the DMK government even slapped the National Security Act on them, jailing for them for a year.
While the DK replaced the damaged Periyar statue with a bronze one, which is still under a 24-hour police guard, there were some attacks on Hindu places of worship in which the Periyar followers damaged pictures of Hindu gods. Some petrol bombs were also thrown at the Ayodhya Mandapam in Chennai.
The government reacted by arresting a few members of the Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam. But the Hindu activists pointed out that while their leaders were detained under the NSA, the DMK government was treating the "violent" Periyar followers with kid gloves. "Whenever the DMK and Karunanidhi came to power, these kinds of attacks on Hindus and Hindu institutions have taken place. Would the DK dare to install Periyar statues, with the controversial Periyar statements against worship and God, in front of mosques and churches," asked Mr Arjun Sampath, the president of the Hindu Makkal Katchi, before he was grabbed by the police and detained under the NSA.
Karuna defends Periyar statues
By Our Special Correspondent
Chennai, Jan. 6: Erecting statues of "fully clad" Tamil rationalist leader E.V. Ramasamy "Periyar" in front of temples is far less objectionable than having nude idols of Hindu gods installed within, according to Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi.
Answering a question at a press conference on Saturday on whether he supported the installation of statues of Periyar, an atheist, in the vicinity of Hindu temples, the chief minister said, <b>"Periyarâs statue depicts him wearing shirt and dhoti. But some idols inside the temples are nude. What do you do with such idols?"</b>
Continuing, he gave two instances of deities being depicted in the nude in two famous temples of Tamil Nadu â in Chidambaram and Tiruvarur. "For instance, you have the Vallabha Ganapathi idol at Chidambaram temple and the Utchishta Ganapathi idol at Tiruvarur, where even the priests are so embarrassed that they keep the idols covered with pieces of cloth."
Mr Karunanidhi, himself a follower of Periyar, pointed out that the late rationalist leader was a Hindu and also an atheist. "Is there not a space for atheism within Hindu religion itself," he asked.
The chief minister had earlier made similar remarks, but with reference to the various smaller statues adorning the gopurams (temple towers) of some temples which depicted Kama Sutra postures. He had then said that Hindus should not object to Periyarâs statue after having accepted such erotic representations on their temples.
This time, Mr Karunanidhiâs remarks refer to deities within the temples. His earlier observations had been criticised by Hindu groups and the BJP, which were upset already by the installation of a statue of Periyar in the temple town of Srirangam in December 2006.
Periyarâs followers in the Dravidar Kazhagam, founded by him as a social reformist, anti-Hindu, anti-Brahmin movement in the first half of the 20th century, had installed his statue in front of the famous Sri Ranganathaswamy temple at Srirangam, near Tiruchi, one of the leading Vaishnavite shrines in the country. The BJP and Hindu groups reacted in anger, and a few activists damaged the concrete statue early in December.
The suspects were arrested and the DMK government even slapped the National Security Act on them, jailing for them for a year.
While the DK replaced the damaged Periyar statue with a bronze one, which is still under a 24-hour police guard, there were some attacks on Hindu places of worship in which the Periyar followers damaged pictures of Hindu gods. Some petrol bombs were also thrown at the Ayodhya Mandapam in Chennai.
The government reacted by arresting a few members of the Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam. But the Hindu activists pointed out that while their leaders were detained under the NSA, the DMK government was treating the "violent" Periyar followers with kid gloves. "Whenever the DMK and Karunanidhi came to power, these kinds of attacks on Hindus and Hindu institutions have taken place. Would the DK dare to install Periyar statues, with the controversial Periyar statements against worship and God, in front of mosques and churches," asked Mr Arjun Sampath, the president of the Hindu Makkal Katchi, before he was grabbed by the police and detained under the NSA.