Days after actor-politician Rajinikanth stirred the hornet’s nest with his remarks about Periyar, a statue of Dravidian social reformer Periyar EV Ramasamy was vandalised in Tamil Nadu by unidentified miscreants on Friday.
Residents were shocked to see the statue’s right hand and face damaged. The Police is on the lookout for those who vandalised the statue near Chengalpattu.
Periyar, who had started the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam, is known as the “Father of the Dravidian Movement”.
The actor-politician Rajinikanth said last week that a 1971 Salem rally held by Periyar featured unclothed effigies of Ram and Sita that had been garlanded with footwear. He made the remarks at an event organised by Cho Ramaswamy’s Thuglak magazine, and said the late editor had criticised the rally.
Following his remarks, massive protests broke out in Chennai with fringe-Dravidian outfits carrying out demonstrations against the superstar.
