E V Ramasamy ‘Periyar’Born in 1879, Periyar is remembered for the Self Respect Movement to redeem the identity and self-respect of Tamils. His work and his legacyFor the average Tamil, Periyar today is an ideology. DK now has limited political influence in Tamil Nadu, but Periyar has grown beyond the DK and even Tamil Nadu. In a way, Raja was right to compare Lenin and Periyar — Periyar is to the Dravidian Movement as Lenin is to Communism. The BJP, which is trying to wear down the image of a Hindi-Hindutva outfit in Tamil Nadu, could find it difficult to live down Raja’s comments.

Source: Indian Express March 07, 2018 19:26 UTC