DMK govt following in footsteps of Dravidian quartet: HR&CE Min

CHENNAI: Minister for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) PK Sekarbabu on Wednesday told the State Assembly that the DMK government would stand tall like ‘Rajagopuram’ as it follow the footsteps of Dravidrian quartet — Periyar EV Ramasamy, CN Annadurai, M Karunanidhi and MK Stalin.

“This government does not divide people in the name of cows nor demolish an existing structure to build something else. Instead, this government builds cow shelters and it serves the devotees like Kamadhenu and renovates the dilapidated buildings,” the HR&CE Minister said, taking a veil dig at the BJP and its Hindutva ideology while replying to the debate on demand for grants for the department.

He continued in the same vein and said the HR&CE department was targeted the most under the Dravidian Model government.

“There was an outcry that the HR&CE department would be dismantled if the DMK returned to power. Until our Chief Minister (MK Stalin) is there, no one can do anything to this department that was created by the Justice Party to promote social justice in spiritualism,” said Sekarbabu and it caused a visual discomfort among the BJP MLAs.

Rebutting former minister and his predecessor Sevur S Ramachandran for stating that some were projecting themselves rather than the department and indulging in “publicity”, Sekarbabu said there was nothing tangible that happened in the department during the previous government.

Since the schemes announced and implemented were well received by the public and the media, he said and added that Rs 4,236 crore worth immovable properties of 502 religious institutions have been retrieved from encroachment in the last two years. The AIADMK government had retrieved temple properties worth Rs 3,819 crore in 10 years of its regime.

The department has also revived monetisation of gold jewels offered by devotees to generate revenue to the temple. The revenue generated through interest helps the department to create infrastructures for the devotees, he said.