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Union Home Minister P
Chidambaram |
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Chennai:
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Sunday said Congress cannot
emerge as a principal party without support of the Dalits in the
country and said whenever it was without major Dalit leaders,
atrocities against the community had raised its head.
"We all want Congress to become a principal party in India,
especially Tamil Nadu. But that cannot be achieved without the
support of Dalits," he said at a function here to mark the joining
of expelled BSP leader K Selvam and his supporters in Congress.
Dalits constituted a major share in the population and if they were
rejected and their rights denied, there was no point in India being
an independent nation, he said.
"Whenever Congress digressed from focussing on Dalit issues or when
Dalit leaders left the party, atrocities against Dalits had raised
its head. This is a fact. To make India powerful and prosperous, we
need Dalits' support," he said.
Saying that the likes of Dalit icons such as Babasaheb Ambedkar and
Babu Jagjivan Ram could bring in changes since they were in the
Congress, Chidambaram exhorted members of the community to join the
party and become leaders.
He recalled that Mahatma Gandhi had focussed on Dalit issues and
their aspirations as part of his freedom struggle.
"We accepted that struggle but not today's armed struggle by Naxals,"
he said.
In its long history, veteran leader P Kakkan was the first Dalit
leader to become TNCC president, later followed by others like
Maragatham Chandrasekhar, Chidambaram said adding a member of the
community could lead the Congressmen in the future too in Tamil Nadu.
Underlining the UPA's commitment towards Dalits' welfare, he said
over Rs 2000 crore had been allotted for the students of the
community for their educational needs, including those pursuing
M.Phil and PhD.
Speaking at the birth centenary celebrations of Kakkan in Madurai
last night, Chidambaram denounced honour killings and discrimination
against Dalits, saying such things brought disrepute to the country.
"Such (honour) killings only brought disgrace and disrepute to the
country..In some places parents removed their children from schools
if the mid-day meal is cooked by Dalits," he said.
He referred to the recent incident in Uttar Pradesh where parents
removed their children from schools where the mid-day meals were
cooked by Dalits.
The country's economic growth rate of nine per cent or Forex reserve
of USD 300 billion would serve no purpose if atrocities like
untouchability continued in India, he said.
"India will get real independence only if social evils are
eradicated from the heart," he said.
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