Tamil Nadu CM turns temple patron

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu's Dravidian movement, built on the foundation of atheism and rationalism, is beginning to shake at its roots with founding member and chief minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi lavishing funds on temple renovation in a way not seen in at least a century. The movement — reformist for the untouchables and ruinous forthe Brahmins — has come a full circle from the days of breaking idols ofHindu deities, especially the ubiquitous Ganpathy, to spending hundreds ofcrores renovating temples and encouraging its members to participate in them.Karunanidhi, 87, is the last of the atheist politicians left of theDravidian crop who have ruled the state for 33 of the last 43 years. Hispredecessors, the late friend-turned-rival MG Ramachandran, and J Jayalalithaa,discarded the ‘rationalist' plank decades ago. This Fridaywill mark the Kumbabishekam, or the consecration, of the centuries-old SriLakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple in Sholinghur, about 100 kilometres north west ofChennai. Mr Karunanidhi has deputed colleagues to supervise the work.“Till date we have spent Rs 420 crore on temple renovation andthis is a clear evidence to show the amount of interest that Kalaignar has shownin promoting temples in the state,” says KR Periakaruppan, minister forHindu religious and charitable endowments. Spending on templerenovation, praying or even cozying up to religious leaders is hardly surprisingfor anyone in a country where prime ministers and presidents often disturb thesilent prayers of the common man with their presence at prominent temples. Butwhen Mr Karunanidhi, a self-proclaimed atheist who has been living next door toa Krishna temple for decades, attends to temple renovation, it is an irony.This change of heart can be attributed to several factors. Astrategy to get votes as people throng temples and religious gurus to seeksolace in a fast-paced material life. Or, a genuine desire on the part ofsomeone in the evening of his life and worried about his legacy to connect withGod. “Spending money on temple renovation would not help theDMK government fetch any votes,” says Cho Ramaswamy, political commentatorand editor of Tamil magazine Thuglaq. Part of the change can beattributed to the state's political landscape, which has transformed beyondrecognition. The Congress is no longer the dominant party, many of the Dravidamovement's cherished goals, such as higher reservation for backward castes, havebeen met, and the beneficiaries have not only become prosperous, but have alsostarted courting God and religion in a big way. Also, to be fair,the Dravida movement never tried to project itself as a comprehensive atheistparty. While the anti-Brahmin rhetoric was strong, it took care to ensure thatit did not hurt the religious beliefs and traditions of many of the state'speople, including their myriad gods and goddesses. So, while Karunanidhi wouldtake time out and attack the Ramayana, he never spoke ill of Murugan, who wasrecognised and promoted as a ‘Tamil god'. Since Karunanidhi'sDravida Munnetra Kazhagam returned to power in May 2006, it has spent around Rs420 crore on temple renovations. This is a near threefold jump over Rs 147 crorespent in the five-year rule of rival All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam,or AIADMK, led by believer J Jayalalithaa. There are 38,481 temples, mutts andtrusts under state control. Karunanidhi, Jayalalithaa andRamachandran have their roots in the Dravidian Movement. The seeds of themovement were sown in 1925 when EV Ramasamy Naicker, known as Periyar, or theelder, walked out of the Indian National Congress convention after the thenBrahmin-dominated party refused to consider a resolution seeking proportionalrepresentation. Periyar's reasons for seeking change were strong. In1914, of the of the 650 graduates in then Madras Province, 452 were from theBrahmin community. Of the 15 elected for the All India Congress Committee, 14were Brahmins. Periyar led the Self-Respect and the Anti-Hindimovements of the aristocrats-led Justice Party formed to further the non-Brahmininterests in the four southern states. The party was renamed Dravidar Kazhagamin 1944 with rationalism and atheism as its main planks and Karunanidhi and hismentor CN Annadurai among the top leadership. “The assets of atemple — land, buildings, jewelry, utensils, cash — should be usedfor the welfare of the people,” said its first manifesto, quoted in thebook A History of the Dravidian Movement by another founding member, VRNeduncheziyan. Karunanidhi is not only devoting his energies totemples, but also to refurbishing their dilapidated cars, which are used duringfestivals and vital for the rural economy. “The main purposeof this is to promote temple tourism and portray Tamil Nadu as a temple touristdestination,” says Periakaruppan. “By doing such renovation works,local economic activity also gets a boost. The areas surrounding the temple areaalso grow and get to do good business.” The state government,which has the famous Srivilliputtur temple tower as its emblem, has ordered therepairing of 225 temple cars at an estimated cost of Rs 10.84 crore. Of the 960wooden cars, some 16 have been rebuilt for Rs 83.85 lakh. “Wehave now started identifying temples which are 1,000 years old and renovatingit,” says N Thirumagal, joint commissioner of the Hindu religious board.Government grants have been raised more than 200 times in the last two decadesto Rs 9.75 crore from Rs 45 lakh a year in 1998-99. The DMK, whichgained huge popularity in its early years by discrediting religious heads andpriests through street protests and film dialogues, has been getting closer tothem, though for the economic uplift of the poor. Karunanidhi, knownas Kalaignar to followers, rubbed shoulders with Satya Sai Baba of Puttaparti afew years ago, when the latter donated funds to build irrigation projects in thestate. He has also started taking up yoga, ostensibly for health reasons.Despite this marked shift in attitude, many doubt whether he isactually turning a believer, or just playing to the gallery.“Karunanidhi will not change himself from being anatheist,” said Hindu Munnani leader Rama Gopalan. “His actions areto deceive gullible people like us. Has he ever expressed his belief in God inthe open? No. He is practising yoga due to health concerns and not out of anybelief.” Rival Ramachandran set the tone for the Dravidianleaders' acceptance of God nearly two decades ago. He created a stir in theearly 80s when he visited the Mookambika temple at Kollur in Karnataka. Hissuccessor, Jayalalithaa in the AIADMK, an offshoot of the Dravida Kazhagam likethe DMK, publicly displayed her belief by visiting temples. In onesuch visit to Kumbakonam during Maha Maham, a holy day in the Tamil calendar, astampede led to scores of deaths. But her belief in seeking divine interventiondid not change. Karunanidhi's long-term associate K Veeramani,president of the Dravida Kazhagam, who blows hot and cold on his policies,believes that the actions may give a feeling that he is a believer now, but heis not. “Two days ago when we celebrated Krishna Jayanthi, the CM did notissue any statement wishing people and he has never done it for any festival forthat matter,” says Veeramani. “This is a clearindication that he is strongly sticking to his atheist principles.” Butthe funds spent on temples, “can be diverted for better purposes likeeducation and hospitals.”