On Tuesday (12 September), Tamil Nadu BJP Chief K Annamalai lashed out at those who claimed that Hinduism is different from Sanatan Dharma in common discourse in Southern states to defend Udhayanidhi Stalin’s hate speech against Sanatan Dharma.
Ramping up his attack against DMK for hatred against Sanatan Dharma, Annamalai shared a picture of a Class 12 textbook on Ethics and Indian Culture, released by the Tamil Nadu government. After exposing the feeble excuse that Hinduism and Sanatan Dharma are different in Tamil Nadu discourse, Annamalai advised DMK leaders including Udhayanidhi Stalin to enroll in Class 12 to get some enlightenment.
He said, “Udhayanidhi Stalin and Sekar Babu claimed that Hinduism and Sanatana Dharma are different after receiving condemnation from all quarters for their call to eradicate Sanatana Dharma. The Class 12 textbook released by TN Govt says that Sanatana Dharma and Hinduism are the same. It also mentions that Sanatana Dharma is the Eternal Dharma.”
Thiru Udhayanidhi Stalin & Thiru Sekar Babu claimed that Hinduism & Sanatana Dharma are different after receiving condemnation from all quarters for their call to eradicate Sanatana Dharma.
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) September 12, 2023
The Class 12 textbook released by TN Govt says that Sanatana Dharma & Hinduism are the… pic.twitter.com/cbVGDixJMg
He added, “We advise PK Sekar Babu and Udhayanidhi Stalin to enroll in this class (12th) to get enlightened.”
Notably, P.K. Sekarbabu is the Minister for the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE).
The picture attached in the post highlights an excerpt from the book where the meaning of the word ‘Hindu’ has been explained. Explaining who Hindus are and what is ‘Hinduism’ it says, “If a living being is suffering due to any reason, it is the Hindu who considers the suffering as its own suffering and comes forward to remove it. Hinduism is a religion with virtuous people. It is called by various names like Hinduism, Sanatana Dharma, and the Religion of Vedas among others.”
Annamalai’s post comes in the wake of claims by Tamil Nadu Congress leader Karti Chidambaram and ilks who argued that Sanatan Dharma is different from Hinduism in Southern discourse. Stating that he himself is a practising Hindu and finds nothing wrong in Udhayanidhi Stalin’s Sanatan Dharma remark, Karti claimed that Sanatan Dharma in southern parlance means Caste discrimination and Caste hierarchy only.
In another post, in a 4-page long response, K Annamalai highlighted the country’s rich civilisational history and noted that DMK wants to attack this by eradicating Sanatan Dharma (Hinduism). Afterward, he asserted that Shekhar Babu, the HR&CE Minister has lost his moral right to hold the post of minister by participating in a meeting where he said, “Let’s abolish Hinduism.”
திமுகவின் கபட நாடகம் இறுதிக் கட்டத்தை எட்டியுள்ளது.
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) September 12, 2023
திமுகவின் வெறுப்பு அரசியல் தமிழகத்தில் இனி எடுபடாது. pic.twitter.com/pruD4dfbcQ
In the note, Annamalai further highlighted that Dravidar Kazhagam President Mr. Veeramani was also present at the ‘Eradicate Sanatan Conference’ where Minister Udayanidhi Stalin said that we would abolish Sanatana Dharma. In the same meeting, Veeramani had said that Sanatana Dharma and Hinduism are one and the same.
Annamalai emphasised, “Sanatana dharma means that all living beings are equal in Sanatana dharma, the philosophy of Hinduism. This is what all devotional literatures including Thirukkural says.”
DMK MP A Raja calls Hindu Religion a menace to India & the world.
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) September 12, 2023
DMK is the principal reason for creating caste divide & hatred in TN, and the DMK MP has the audacity to blame Sanatana Dharma for the mess they made. pic.twitter.com/fqWO9FiQqY
Earlier in the day, Annamalai also lambasted DMK MP A Raja for calling Hindu religion a menace to India and the world. He asserted that DMK is the principal reason for creating caste divide and hatred in Tamil Nadu, yet DMK MP has the audacity to blame Sanatana Dharma for the mess they made.
Following Udhayanidhi Stalin’s hate speech, Annamalai has been taking on DMK head-on over the repeated attacks against Sanatan Dharma. Earlier, he challenged DMK to contest the coming election on the issue of Sanatan Dharma.
