A misunderstood leader

Every year on October 30, huge crowd throngs a village 'pasumpon' in Ramnad district of Tamil Nadu to celebrate the birth anniversary of Muthuramalingam Thevar, popularly called 'Devar Thirumaganar'. Strangely, his birth and death anniversary falls on the same date. Known as the Tilak of South India, he was in the Indian National Congress till 1939 and later joined the Forward Block till his death. He was a freedom fighter and spent ten years in prison. He belonged to a landlord family with Justice Party background. He renounced his family life by negating marriage. He was known for his spiritual approach towards politics and dedication to the freedom struggle and nation-building. He was attracted towards Subhash Chandra Bose and, hence, was in the Forward Block till his demise. For him, spirituality and patriotism were the two eyes of India. He led a simple, bachelor life with high moral standards. He had distributed his land in 36 villages to Dalit families of those villages. He was elected to Parliament by defeating the candidate of the Justice Party and was a charismatic leader and a powerful orator with a huge following. He not only fought for freedom but also waged a relentless struggle against the British to liberate a number of rustic communities from the stigma attached with them through the Criminal Tribes Act in the year 1920. These communities had been mobilised by him for this struggle and ultimately, he won the struggle against the British. It is to be understood that he was a reformer. He was the force behind the entry of Dalits into the Meenakshi temple. He was a factor to reckon with in Tamil Nadu politics till his demise at the age of 55.

It is a tradition in India and Tamil Nadu that people go to places where leaders have been laid to rest or consecrated and pay their tributes both on their birth and death anniversary. But Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar's memorial activities are different from other leaders. Many may not know this and hence treat it as yet another leader's memorial. But unlike other leaders, he was laid to rest in a Samadhi by performing the rituals to be performed for saints and sages. It was done by following the tradition advocated by Saint Ramalinganar. His body was laid to rest in a Samadhi and the activities connected to it were done by a saint. All activities were carried out by a spiritual guru, not by priest or politicians. It is a place of worship, not a memorial. Memorials had been created for CN Annadurai, K Kamaraj, M Karunanidhi, MGR and J Jayalalitha. All other leaders had been laid to rest in a memorial with no religious sanctity attached to it. But Muthuramalinga Thevar Samadhi is uniquely compared with places where great saints and sages were laid to rest; a distinction to be understood by everyone. The annual event is being conducted for all leaders for both birth and death anniversary. It is a function of three days full of rituals as per the tradition. Huge mobilisation of people takes place every year during the event which is called "Guru Pooja". Poojas are performed on all three days with spiritual significance attached to the celebration.

On the third day of the function, all political leaders with their supporters visit the Samadhi and pay their tributes by placing flowers on the feet of the statue. Sacred ash is distributed as prasad and leaders put it on their forehead. This is done with the aim of drawing the support of the Thevar community. No mainstream political party stays away from this event. There is yet another group which visits the shrine from the same community to give a message to the political class that the Thevar community is a force to reckon with in Tamil Nadu politics. Women go to those places as they go to temples with deeply religious values and sentiments.

Politics in Tamil Nadu has reduced a tall, acclaimed, spiritual, transformational and national leader with unique traits into a caste leader without knowing the contributions made by the leader as well as his perspective. It is a low level of politics to visit the holy place with an objective of cornering the votes of the Thevar community and having objectives totally against the politics practised by Muthuramalinga Thevar. Political parties have disgraced the stature of Muthuramalinga Thevar. Thevar chairs have been created in may universities and yet there is no substantial research contribution from the chair. They also conducted meetings annually as rituals.

No other leader's Memorial Day can be compared with the "Guru Pooja" of Muthuramalinga Thevar. His contributions are unfathomable but the manner in which the parties conduct themselves during the Guru Pooja day is unacceptable to any standard as their vested interests have converted Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar into a caste leader. It is a politics of simplification and reductionism.

(The author is a former Professor and Rajiv Gandhi Chair for Panchayati Raj Studies, Gandhigram Rural Institute. Views expressed are strictly personal)