STALIN'S HINDU PUSH

THE DMK GOVERNMENT IS SPRUCING UP THE STATE’S SHRINES AND THEIR MANAGEMENT—AND SUBTLY CHANGING ITS OWN IMAGE IN THE PROCESS

-  AMARNATH K. MENON

The M.K. Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government is striving to give the state’s temples a makeover and, in the bargain, give itself one too. A massive renovation plan is afoot for Hindu shrines, including the retrieval of encroached land. The state’s Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department, which oversees temple administration in Tamil Nadu, has been issuing eviction notices thick and fast. Budgetary allocations for conservation and creating pilgrim amenities have gone up manifold in the past two years.

“Temples,” Stalin had said at an HR&CE event in January, “are the symbols of our art and culture, their architecture an example of our artistic excellence. It is our duty to preserve them.” In doing so, the Tamil Nadu chief minister is also hoping to present his party in a new avatar. Rationalism and social reform have always been at the core of the Dravidian movement, which has had such stalwarts as the atheist E.V. Ramasamy at its helm. The DMK, too, is a child of that movement. Addressing the concern that its ideology perhaps makes the party averse to religion, Stalin had added, “Those who lack reason criticise Dravidian tenets and say we are anti-religion. We are opp osed to fanatics, not religion.”