VCK’s long struggle to mainstream Dalit politics a success now: Thol Thirumavalavan

CHENNAI: Calling the performance of the Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc in the seven-phase Lok Sabha polls as a “victory of Ambedkar and his ideology” against anti-democratic and fascist forces, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan cautioned the democratic forces to align together to stop the communal and caste-oriented political parties from gaining ground in the Dravidian heartland.

Father of the Constitution Dr BR Ambedkar, according to Thirumavalavan, is the “hero” of the election. His name resonated in the length and breadth of the country during the seven-phase election campaigns. “Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, carried the copy of the Constitution given by Ambedkar to campaign. The opposition camp (BJP) took his name to defend their stand. It paid rich dividends for the INDIA bloc as Dalits and marginalised sections in the country rallied behind us and voted en masse to register a remarkable victory in significant numbers of constituencies,” Thirumavalavan told DT Next in an interview a day after retaining Chidambaram constituency.

He romped home with a margin of 1,03,554 against AIADMK candidate M Chandrahasan, who secured little over 4 lakh votes.

“After winning the Chidambaram constituency, I appealed to leaders of the BJP’s alliance parties Chandrababu Naidu, Nitish Kumar and Eknath Shinde to join hands with the INDIA bloc to save democracy,” he said and continued that this is not the time to think about electoral alliance as they should take a call for the larger good of the country. They should understand that the BJP returning to power for the third time is dangerous to the nation.

The VCK’s decade-long struggle to mainstream the Dalit politics has paid off in these elections, he said, adding, “By winning two seats in our symbol (Pot), we are meeting the criteria of the EC to get the status of recognised party in the state. It is the first step of our struggle to mainstream the Dalit politics. We will continue our efforts.”

On the performance of INDIA bloc headed by the DMK in TN, he said they have prevented fascist forces from gaining a foothold in the state in this election. He, however, cautioned that communal forces like BJP have increased its vote share marginally. Being a constituent of the secular front, the VCK is taking efforts to coordinate and consolidate the democratic forces to fight anti-democratic forces.

“More than strengthening our party, we are intended to bring political and democratic forces to stop the growth of anti-democratic and Sanatana forces for the welfare of the nation,” he said.

The party is also spreading its wings to reach out to Ambedkar Movements and youngsters inspired by Dr BR Ambedkar’s ideology in Southern states. There is significant development in their three-decade long works in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka states as many youths, irrespective of caste, religion and language, were joining the VCK’s unit in their respective states.