The recent remarks by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Rajya Sabha MP R.S. Bharathi that the appointments of members of Scheduled Castes as Judges of the Madras High Court was absolutely nothing however “alms provided by the Dravidian movement“, only reflects the patronising mindset of the leaders of the Dravidian motion
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In reality, late DMK leader and previous Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi would typically publicly state that he was a sambandhi of Dalits (a reference to the marriage of his child M. K. Alagiri to a lady belonging to a Scheduled Caste).
Dalit uplift neglected
This attitude must be put versus the background of the criticism that the Dravidian movement, regardless of its remarkable contribution to social reforms, represented the interests of those who came next, after the Brahmins, that is the intermediate castes on the caste social ladder, however paid little attention for the uplift of Dalits.
