It's yet another regular day in our ancestral home in Madurai and my grandfather was hooked on to the TV with his wrinkled eyes. For us the kids in the house, meh it was some sort of boring news stuff which elders are always obsessed with. Meanwhile I figured it out to be a public meeting of a politician of whom I have a stereotypical image.(Credits to Manivannan cinematic universe), my tiny tod brother is battling with my gramps to get hold of the remote to switch to Jetix. The old guard won finally with his acute stubbornness stating- "I will not yield till Kalaignar finishes his speech". I was taken aback and finally burst out saying- "What has he even done to impact your life that you put him above your grandson?". He instead flashed a wry smile and continued watching.
It was from then I started exploring about this man with resources in hand to find out how someone has managed to not only stay relevant in a dynamic environment like politics but also creep into hearts of the people with his sly stochiometric mix of oratory skills and brandishing Tamil pride. In-spite of having my reservations for his stand on institutionalizing corruption with his infamous
honeycomb analogy and filling his party's coffers reflective of typical corporate operatives, I am constraining myself only to the primitive years of his governance.
The Dravidian party's meteoric win in the Assembly elections in 1967 riding on the height of self-respect movement championed by the deadly ghost of the savarnas- Mr. Periyar passed on the baton to his proteges- Anna and a then young Karunandhi who both were instrumental in transforming the social justice war cry of the bearded man into legislative reforms. Implementing 49% reservation in government jobs and admissions to higher education was a milestone affirmative action which aimed at ensuring equal access to opportunities for the historically disadvantaged/oppressed communities. This gave the state a broad based workforce for IT sector when the economy was opening it's doors for liberalization in the 90's. As opposed to the earlier times, wherein the medical profession was dominated by the upper caste this scheme also gave the necessary human capital for setting up a robust rural health infrastructure, ensuring fair treatment for all.
When India was still sticking to the Vedic Texts of treating the female gender as secondary human beings in the Hindu social order, it was during this regime that a law was passed advocating for equal property rights for women. Meanwhile Self respect(devoid of an religious rituals) and inter-caste marriages were given legal status: crusade for a casteless society. The literal banning of hand-pulled rickshaws was a loud and daring message to the hegemonic forces that "No Man is above another".The entire state was covered by the public distribution system within a span of 10 years, eminent economists like Amartya Sen credit this to the upliftment of people out of poverty in Tamil Nadu. Fixing the land ceiling by amending the land reforms bill, the surplus land was distributed to the landless peasants, putting an end to their woes.
The era was an attempt at rationalism in culture, democracy in politics and secular ethos in religion and inclusivity in development. Despite aplenty criticisms, recent years have seen resurgence of interest among the youth about the legacy of this period filled with egalitarian initiatives in establishing the welfare state it is today with unaddressed challenges.
It was from then I started exploring about this man with resources in hand to find out how someone has managed to not only stay relevant in a dynamic environment like politics but also creep into hearts of the people with his sly stochiometric mix of oratory skills and brandishing Tamil pride. In-spite of having my reservations for his stand on institutionalizing corruption with his infamous
honeycomb analogy and filling his party's coffers reflective of typical corporate operatives, I am constraining myself only to the primitive years of his governance.
The Dravidian party's meteoric win in the Assembly elections in 1967 riding on the height of self-respect movement championed by the deadly ghost of the savarnas- Mr. Periyar passed on the baton to his proteges- Anna and a then young Karunandhi who both were instrumental in transforming the social justice war cry of the bearded man into legislative reforms. Implementing 49% reservation in government jobs and admissions to higher education was a milestone affirmative action which aimed at ensuring equal access to opportunities for the historically disadvantaged/oppressed communities. This gave the state a broad based workforce for IT sector when the economy was opening it's doors for liberalization in the 90's. As opposed to the earlier times, wherein the medical profession was dominated by the upper caste this scheme also gave the necessary human capital for setting up a robust rural health infrastructure, ensuring fair treatment for all.
When India was still sticking to the Vedic Texts of treating the female gender as secondary human beings in the Hindu social order, it was during this regime that a law was passed advocating for equal property rights for women. Meanwhile Self respect(devoid of an religious rituals) and inter-caste marriages were given legal status: crusade for a casteless society. The literal banning of hand-pulled rickshaws was a loud and daring message to the hegemonic forces that "No Man is above another".The entire state was covered by the public distribution system within a span of 10 years, eminent economists like Amartya Sen credit this to the upliftment of people out of poverty in Tamil Nadu. Fixing the land ceiling by amending the land reforms bill, the surplus land was distributed to the landless peasants, putting an end to their woes.
The era was an attempt at rationalism in culture, democracy in politics and secular ethos in religion and inclusivity in development. Despite aplenty criticisms, recent years have seen resurgence of interest among the youth about the legacy of this period filled with egalitarian initiatives in establishing the welfare state it is today with unaddressed challenges.
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