Forty-six years after writer Jayakanthan lambasted the Dravidian Movement and DMK founder C.N. Annadurai at Sathyamurthy Bhavan, DMK MP Kanimozhi on Wednesday declared at the same venue that the late writer’s views were close to the Dravidian ideology.
“He was never in favour of a nation in which Tamils or other nationalities would lose their identity and rights. He also wondered whose interest the Indian Constitution was representing and argued that a Constitution denying self-determination to States was nothing but a slave manual,” she said at a condolence meeting for Jayakanthan organised at the Congress headquarters by the Desiya Murasu reader’s circle.
Ms. Kanimozhi said there was no difference between the State autonomy propagated by the DMK and Jayakanthan’s views on the subject. She said even though Jayakanthan was highly critical of Dravidar Kazhagam founder Periyar, the grand old man appreciated every word Jayakanthan spoke at the Tamil writers’ conference.
Writer S. Ramakrishnan said though the Communist Movement taught and shaped Jayakanthan, Jawaharlal Nehru remained an inspiration for him. “Nehruvian idealism found expression in his characters,” he said, rejecting the allegation that Jayakanthan’s works smacked of propaganda. “He himself said one of the functions of literature is propaganda,” said Mr Ramakrishnan.
CPI leader K. Subbarayan said Jayakanthan was a continuation of the long tradition and greatness of Tamil land and its great men delved deep in wisdom. CPI (M) MP T.K. Rangarajan, Jayakanthan’s friend P.S. Kuppusamy and senior Congress leader and editor of Desiya Murasu A. Gopanna spoke.
