Leaders condole death of Veera Santhanam

In a statement, chief of VCK Thol Thirumavalavan said, “I am deeply saddened over the death of Veera Santhanam, who also strived hard for Sri Lankan Tamils. He is not only an artist, but also a social activist.” 

Remembering that Santhanam participated in the VCK’s Tamil Protection Movement, Thiruma stated that the famous painter was taking part in all the protests to protect Tamils. 

The artist also criticised the government, which was acting against Tamils and he was the person, who vehemently demanded to make Tamil Eelam as a separate country, he added. Similarly, founder-president of PMK S Ramadoss also condoled the death of the artist. 

“Painter Santhanam’s sacrifice cannot be described in words. He dedicated his entire life to the Tamil Eelam in the form of arts and paintings.” He was a pioneer in painting Thanjavur Mullivaikkal Muttram and it paved the way for world to understand the fact that how the Lankan government executed a ‘genocide.’ 

His death would be irreparable to the entire Tamil community, he said and added that if he used his economical background, he would have reached the height of fame, but he wanted only ‘simplicity.’ Left party leaders also expressed their condolences. 

R Mutharasan, state secretary, CPI, said that Santhanam’s passion in painting had been from childhood. “He was a role model for other persons and his paintings will depict the Tamils’ sufferings in Lanka,” he noted. 

Likewise, G Ramakrishnan, state secretary, CPM, said, “Santhanam was born for protecting the rights of Tamils and even in his feeble age, he never gave up paintings. Loss of such a big personality is unacceptable.”