Tamil Nadu Minister for Higher Education K. Ponmudy on Tuesday, May 9, 2023, said that the DMK was not against Dikshithars or the Brahmins, but was only opposed to the suppression of people in the name of caste.
Speaking at a public meeting in Chidambaram on Tuesday night to mark the completion of two years of DMK rule in Tamil Nadu, he said that the party had nothing personal against Dikshithars or Brahmins. There are many Brahmins in the DMK, he said.
Reacting to Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi’s statement that minor girls were subjected to virginity tests (two-finger tests), Mr. Ponmudy wanted to know whether the Governor accepted the fact that child marriages were prevalent amongst the Dikshithar community in Chidambaram.
Child marriages are an offence as per statutory law and the State Government has tightened these laws, he said. It was the duty of the government to prevent such marriages and there was nothing wrong in doing so, he added.
The Dravidian movement was founded to usher in equality and social justice. It has fought against caste discrimination and Thanthai Periyar, Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi had all lent their voices in effort to eradicate caste differences, he said.
