First Self-respect Movement Conference
After leaving the Congress Party, Periyar launched the Self-Respect Movement in 1925. The first conference of Self-Respect Movement was held at Chengalpet in February 1929, in which the following resolutions were adopted:
1. Abolition of untouchability.
2. Equal rights to all people.
3. Removal of Varnashram Dharma.
4. People should not wear caste marks on their body or forehead.
5. Abolition of Purohit system.
6. No wastage of money in temple worship.
7. People should drop their caste names.
8. Use of public fund for educational and employment purposes and not for building mutts (temples).
Though Periyar’s self-respect movement (1925-39) and the Justice Party movement had a common goal of dethroning the Brahmins in Madras presidency, their strategies were completely different. Some of the highly religious-minded Justice Party members were allergic to Periyar’s methodology. The self-respect movement, popularly known as the SRM, was primarily responsible for the socio-political and cultural awakening among the non-Brahmins in the presidency. This movement was basically a cultural revolt against the caste system, the Brahmin supremacy, concept of god, religion, superstitions, and the all-pervading casteism. Its another key objective was to make the Dravidian society rational in outlook.
The SRM movement was based on five main principles:
1. There is no god.
2. Religion must be abolished.
3. Destruction of the Congress Party.
4. Abolition of Gandhism; and
5. Uprooting Brahmanism.
Journals published by the movement
On May 2, 1925 Periyar began to edit and publish a Tamil weekly titled, ‘Kudi Arasu’ (Republic) to spread the principles of self-respect movement and for awakening the Dravidian race against the Brahmanical oppression. Kudi Arasu was banned by the Britishers in the year 1933 but Periyar started another magazine ‘Puratchi’ (Revolution). In 1934 he brought out the Tamil weekly ‘Pagutharivu’, that is ‘Rationalism’.-
Ambedkar pointed out reasons for the defeat of Justice Party in 1937 elections
Periyar’s attack on Brahminism - Hinduism, god, priestly class, unscientific and inhuman customs and practices in the name of religion was unchallengeable in the modern history of the country. Self Respect Movement provided a solid non-political foundation for successfully carrying out the political activities of the Justice Party under Periyar’s leadership. Though from 1921 to 1937, the party achieved the desired success, it was humbled at the 1937 elections as it lost the power to the Congress. Outlining the reasons for the debacle of the Justice Party, Dr.Ambedkar, in a speech in Madras on September 23, 1944 said, “there were mainly two reasons for this unprecedented and unexpected drubbing. In the first place, the Justice Party followers failed to understand clearly the doctrinal differences between their party and the opposition party; and secondly, it became the party of job hunters and forgot that 90 percent of non-Brahmins lived in the villages.”
Justice Party renamed as Dravidar Kazhagam
The electoral drubbing in 1937 aggravated the need for some inspiring leadership in the Justice Party, and 1938 became the turning point in the history of this political outfit. In 1938, at its three day 14th convention in Madras, the party elected Periyar as its president, even as he was in the prison. And under Periyar’s leadership, the party’s name was changed to ‘Dravidar Kazhagam’ at the provincial conference held in Salem on 27th August, 1944.
In 1953. Congress Chief Minister, Mr.C.Rajagopalachari introduced the programme called ‘Kula Kalvi Thittam’ that is ‘Communal Educational Programme’ under which children were made to learn their family profession and traditions. This was another and an indirect method of keeping caste system alive. Periyar rightly sensed it and opposed it with by all means. As a consequence Mr.C.Rajagopalachari had to step down and Nadar-ex-untouchable community man, Mr. Kamaraj became the Chief Minister, who introduced the liberal-caste free educational policy. For this the total credit goes to Periyar.
Periyar insisted abolition of Hinduism
In 1927, there was a dialogue between Gandhi and Periyar. Periyar at that meeting clearly told Gandhi about the urgent need for abolishing Hinduism because there was no religion called Hinduism. Periyar warned Gandhi that, “having Hinduism in vogue, you cannot effect any permanent changes. Brahmins won’t allow anybody to go so far. If they find that your ideas go against their interests, immediately they will begin to oppose you. So far no great person has made any kind of change. If any person tries to do it now, Brahmins will not allow him to have a free-hand. He also made clear to Gandhi that he had no faith in a single-Brahmin in the country including Rajaji. That meeting between Gandhi and Periyar was nothing but similar to the thunderous episodes that marked the relationship between Gandhi and Ambedkar.
Independence is nothing but transfer of power to Brahmin - Bania combine
Again, Periyar had altogether a different concept of Swaraj or independence from Gandhi’s or other Congress leaders’. Therefore he described the dawn of independence, as merely a transfer of power to the Brahmins and the Baniyas envisaging their socio-cultural domination and power to exploit non-Brahmins.
Both, Periyar and Ambedkar kept on challenging and attacking the institutions of god, Brahmanical religion, the Shastras, temples and priest-craft and described them as the root cause of the exploitation and suffering of the Shudras and Ati-Shudras. Both of them were anti-Congressmen and opposed the policy of Gandhi and Congress. Periyar used to tell people that there was no god and if he was in the stone let him speak out, else throw the stone into the dung-heap.
(To be continued) -- The Modern Rationalist (May 2010)
