Singers missed a line from Tamil Nadu’s state anthem during its rendition in an event presided by Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi.
A line missing from the rendition of Tamil Nadu’s state anthem at a government event presided over by Governor R N Ravi sparked a major political controversy on Friday, leading to a war of words between Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin and the Governor.
Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi with chief minister MK Stalin
During the Hindi month valedictory function at Doordarshan Kendra in Chennai, the singers omitted the line “Thekkanamum adhil sirantha Dravida nal thiru naadum” –which roughly translates to the great Dravidian nation– from the state anthem Tamizh Thaai Valthu, the official state song of Tamil Nadu. The event, which also marked the beginning of the golden jubilee celebrations of Doordarshan Chennai, triggered sharp reactions across the political spectrum.
CM Stalin accused Governor Ravi of deliberately disrespecting Tamil Nadu and its people. He demanded the central government recall the Governor, questioning Ravi’s suitability for the post. “A person who doesn’t abide by the law and acts as per his wishes is not fit to hold office,” Stalin said in a social media post. He also accused the Governor of harbouring a “Dravidian allergy” and wondered if Ravi was a governor or an ‘Aryan.’
“Will the governor, suffering from the Dravidian allergy, ask the people to sing the national anthem leaving out Dravida?” the chief minister asked.
Governor Ravi termed Stalin’s remarks “regrettable” and accused him of making racist comments.
“The chief minister’s false allegation of disrespecting Tamizh Thaai Valthu is unfortunately cheap and lowers the dignity of the high constitutional office he holds,” Ravi said in a statement posted on social media.
The governor clarified that he always recites the full anthem “with reverence, pride, and precision”.
“As a proud Indian I myself have taken numerous substantive initiatives to spread Tamil, the oldest and richest living language, in other states of the country, the latest being to set up , with cooperation of the Assam govt, a Tamil diploma course in Gauhati University for spread of Tamil in the North East,” Ravi said.
He added, “Since he (Stalin) rushed to public with his racist remarks and false imputations, I am constrained to respond.”
AIADMK condemns omission
AIADMK chief and former chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami strongly condemned the omission. Calling it a “blunder,” he said, “The word ‘Dravidam’ is a symbol of the great revolution against oppression and stands for the world’s oldest civilization.” He urged that such actions, which undermine Dravidian culture, must stop.
Doordarshan Kendra Chennai issued an apology for the error, calling it an “inadvertent mistake” caused by distraction, and insisted that the singers had no intention of disrespecting the anthem.
“We apologise for the inadvertent mistake. There was no intention from the singers to disrespect Tamil or Tamizh Thaai Valthu. In this regard, we apologise for the inconvenience caused to the Hon’ble Governor of Tamil Nadu,” a statement from Doordarshan Tamil, said.
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
