Some days ago I gave a speech in parliament and I believe it was appreciated in Tamil Nadu. As I was walking out of parliament, one journalist asked me, ‘why did you mention Tamil Nadu so many times?’ Rahul Gandhi recalled.
“My blood is mixed with your soil, and so I have the right to call myself a Tami”l, said MP Rahul Gandhi, during the launching event of the autobiography of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin titled “Ungalil Oruvan” (One Among You), on Monday, February 28.
“It is always a pleasure for me to come to Tamil Nadu. And I don’t mean that in a light way. I mean that in a very profound and deep way. Some days ago I gave a speech in parliament and I believe it was appreciated in Tamil Nadu. As I was walking out of parliament, one journalist asked me ‘you gave this speech (in the parliament), why did you mention Tamil Nadu so many times?’ And I suddenly realised that I had mentioned Tamil Nadu many times. And as I was walking out, without realising it, it came out of my mouth that ‘I am a Tamil’”, he said.
Further, he continued, “Then I got in the car and was thinking ‘Why did you say that? Why did those words come out of your mouth? You were not born in Tamil Nadu? You don’t speak Tamil? Tamil is a 3,000-year-old civilisation. You don’t even begin to understand that civilisation. How can you say you are Tamil? I asked myself. How have you given yourself the right to say that you are Tamil?”.
“I was thinking about this for some time in the car while I was driving home and I realized why I said those words. Because my blood is mixed with your soil. It was a sad experience for me losing my father. Very difficult experience but also an experience I learnt from. And so, I realised that I do have the right to call myself Tamil,” Rahul Gandhi said in his speech.
On May 21, 1991, Rajiv Gandhi had reached Sriperumbudur as part of his campaign for the mid-term elections that was announced after the Janata Dal government led by VP Singh had collapsed in October 1990. Around 10.20 pm that night, he was assassinated in a bomb blast, which caused ripples of fear and protests across the country.
Taking a hit at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for trying to impose his ‘ideas’ on the people of Tamil Nadu, he said, “When he does not understand that Tamil Nadu is not merely two words, and that it is a 3,000 year old civilisation, he insults the state and the country also”, and added that Modi merely stating that he respected Tamil people would not suffice.
It was Rahul Gandhi who released the DMK chief’s part one of the autobiography in Tamil ‘Ungalil Oruvan’. Stalin, who turns 69 on Tuesday, March 1, said that he had always dedicated himself to public life and assured that he would remain so forever. The message of the event also made it clear that the DMK is poised to make concerted attempts to work towards a larger role for the party and its chief Stalin, as well as at the national level, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Bihar leader of opposition, Tejashwi Yadav and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah were present during the event.
Source: The News Minute