Kalaignar has more often
declared that he is a communist and that had he not come across Periyar and
Arignar Anna he would have been in communist movement. Last week, presiding
over the marriage of the grandson of popular leader of communist movement in
yesteryears P.Jeevanandam, affectionately called as Jeeva – he passionately
recollected his relations with communists and communist movement for over 60
years. Kalaignar has made it a custom to heartily and touchingly recollect the
past, forgetting the wounds inflicted in between for various unpleasant
reasons. It was mainly because the Dravidian movement did not have relations
with communists during their heydays but when they were getting strangled and
suffocating under oppression and onslaughts. Hence no ulterior motive could be
ascribed for the relations of Dravidian leaders. The conscience of the present
day communists know that.
Way back in 1932, Thanthai
Periyar visited Soviet Union for three months
and on his return, he along with M. Singaravelar drafted a socialist programme
giving clarion call for a socialist revolution. He also launched a journal
‘Puratchi’ (revolution) and spread the idea of socialism. It was only latter
that Periyar realized that in our caste-ridden society, the scourge of casteist
tyranny had to be fought against and eradicated first to pave way for genuine
socialism. So, principles of communism were no anathema for the Dravidian
movement but was its ultimate goal. That was why Arignar Anna, after founding
the DMK, declared, ‘I will go to Moscow,
meet Molotov (Vyacheslav Molotov, first deputy Premier of Soviet Union under
Joseph Stalin 1939-49 and 1953-57).
The leaders of the
Dravidian movement extended support to communists not just in words but in
deeds.
During 1946-47, on the eve
of the exit of the British rulers, communists ventured for establishment of a
proletarian dictatorship state in India through violent revolution
and were subjected to severe oppression. The then Premier of Madras Presidency Dankuturi
Prakasam Bandulu launched severe attack on them with iron hand. Conspiracy
cases and murder cases were foisted against communist leaders and important
leaders went underground. No radicalist nor revolutionary came forward to speak
in support of them.
Periyar spoke in support
of the struggles of communists and wrote articles in his journals. Periyar
spoke for the communist (railway) workers who were killed in police firing in
Golden Rock, Tiruchi. Even speaking in support of communist was considered an
offence then. Periyar campaigned for communist leaders who were in jails and
underground during the first general election in 1952.
One of the staunch lieutenants
of Periyar was Kuthoosi Gurusamy whose wife Kunjitham Ammal and her sister Kantham
Ammal were employed in education department. Their father Subramanian was a
violin artist. But their family was courageous enough to give shelter to
communist leader Manali Kandasami, who was in underground.
Another leader in
underground Jeeva sought asylum with the drama troupe of M.R.Radha, a disciple
of Periyar. When the police on suspicion raided twice or thrice, they tonsured
Jeeva’s head, put up a ‘namam’ on his forehead and in such disguise he was
introduced as screen puller of the troupe. Jeeva fell in love with a lady then
and married her later. Their daughter was married under presidentship of
Periyar. The father of the bridegroom was a DK worker. It is the wedding of the
grandson of Jeeva couple that was solemnized by Kalaignar last week.
It was during the
aforesaid period of oppression that 22 communist prisoners were brutally
attacked and shot dead by police in Salem
prison. Nobody dared to come forward and speak about the heinous massacre. It
was the same leader Kalaignar who spoke about the incident in all public
meetings in a moving manner. In his speeches during that period this incident
used to be a highlight. In later days an important leader of the CPM used to
say that “it was only Kalaignar who single-handedly carried out a campaign about
the sacrifice of our comrades.”
The Tamils who migrated to
Malaya on various occasions were working as
plantain workers there and they had a workers’ movement. The government there
then treated them as communists and the CPI was also acclaiming so. The leader
of that movement was one Ganapathi who migrated from Thambikottai village in
Thanjavur district. They were charged with possession of arms and indulging in
extremist activities. Another person called Malaya Sambasivam was his deputy.
In the case in court, they were sentenced to death penalty.
A huge agitation broke out
in Tamil Nadu to get them released from hanging sentence. Leaders of the Dravidian
movement like Periyar and Anna organized protest demonstrations and meetings.
The then communist leaders like Jeeva also associated themselves in this task.
Petitions were sent upto the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. But nothing
worked out and Ganapathi was hanged to death in Malaya.
The Dravidian movement did not turn aside because they were communist
militants.
Besides speaking about
this in public meetings, Kalaignar wrote a booklet ‘Kayitril Thongiya
Ganapathi’ which was sold very wildly taking Ganapathi’s sacrifice to nook and
corner of the state.
In his appeal the sentence
was reduced for Mayala Sambasivam. He returned to Tamil Nadu settled in North Arcot, joined CPI and carried out his work. Later
he was in absolute poverty. Kalaignar, who was the CM then, provided
considerable financial assistance for the needs of his family. But there are reports
in the area that communist party, which he believed, gave him up in his later
days.
Another communist leader
who underwent life imprisonment and came out of prison was K.Baladhandayutham.
After his release he stooped too low and spoke worse than a fourth rate
platform speaker about Kalaignar and his family members. Possibly he would not
have spoken so had he thought for a while about his personal life. Only they
know as to how such personal attacks were acceptable to communist culture. But
in 1971, CPI formed an alliance with the DMK. Rabid anti-DMK elements like
Mohan Kumaramangalam and Baladhandayutham went to Parliament winning elections
with DMK support. Thus right from the days of Periyar till Kalaignar now, the
leaders of the Dravidian movement continue to stand in support of the
communists during their testing times.
But the leaders of both
CPI and CPM have no compunction in mortgaging their avowed basic ‘working
class’ policy at the altar of the ‘iron’ lady, who overnight mercilessly
dismissed from service about two lakh government employees and unleashed a
fascist regime during her previous tenure are more loyally working than ADMK
rank to bring her back to power.
If not the leaders of the
CPI and CPM, at least if the cadre of both parties sincerely revisit the
history of their parties in Tamil Nadu, they will be doing a great service to
the future of their respective parties!
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PS: At the wedding
function of Jeeva’s grandson, Kalaignar regretted the absence of many
associates of the late leader. Of course, for the CPM, Jeeva was a shunned
‘revisionist’; but the likes of Pandiyans, Mahendrans of the CPI claim
themselves to be the direct political and literary heirs of Jeeva. It is for
them to explain the ‘boycott’!
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