Chennai News: When the effigies of Ravana were being burnt on Dussehra across the country, the capital of Tamil Nadu saw a different view in Chennai. Periyarist organization Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam (TDPK) burnt effigies of Lord Rama, Sita and Laxman while celebrating ‘Raoanan Leela’.
The incident took place outside the Sanskrit College in Maylapur, where about 40 activists of the organization broke the police barricades and carried out the effigy burning.
Protest against Ramayana or Dravidian identity fight,
The leader of the organization S. Kumran said that this protest is against the thinking in which the Dravidians in the Ramayana are depicted as demons. They allege that every year in Delhi and North India, the effigy of characters like Ravana is insulted by the Dravidian identity. In response to this, he celebrates ‘Raoranan Leela’. Kumran also claims that he had written a letter to the Prime Minister demanding a ban on Ravana combustion, but no response was received.
A heavy police force was present on the spot to stop the event, but the protesters broke the barricades and carried out the protest. The police then detained 11 workers and the court sent them on remand.
History repeated, Debate again intensified
This is not the first time that it has happened. Periyar supporters also organized ‘Ram Dahan’ in the 1970s. In 1974, Periyar’s wife Maniammai burnt the effigy of Ram in Chennai for the first time. Debate on Ramayana, Dravidian politics and cultural conflict has once again intensified due to repeating this tradition after decades.