Madurai :

Members of various political parties paid homage at the Perungamanallur memorial near Usilampatti in Madurai on Sunday, apparently with an eye on the Thevar vote bank. Later in the day, film director Bharathiraja performed a pooja for his next film in memory of the people who were designated as criminal tribes by the British, after paying homage at the memorial.

The Perungamanallur pillar with the burning torch was established in memory of 16 people from the region who were killed by the British on April 3, 1920 because they retaliated against the Criminal Tribes Act. The incident is referred to as the Jallianwala of south India.

Members of the Piramalai Kallar community were brought under the Criminal Tribes Act by the British and they had to submit their finger prints on a daily basis at the local police station so that the police could keep track of their movements. But they decided to fight against this Act and ended up being killed by the British. Many pay homage on this day at the memorial, but this year saw a bigger representation from the political parties as elections are round the corner, and the Kallar form a major portion of the vote bank of this region.

Minister Sellur K Raju, rural district secretary and Madurai mayor V V Rajan Chellappa, MLAs Muthuramalingam, Tamilarasan and Karuppiah, were among the first to visit the memorial at Sedapatti and pay homage.

DMK members led by former assembly speaker Sedapatti Muthiah paid tributes at the memorial.

MDMK leader Vaiko, who paid tributes at the memorial, said he always wanted to respect the acts of valour and people who fought social oppression.

Five members of the All India Forward Bloc (Vallarasu faction), led by their general secretary Ilaiyarasu, who had undertaken a 16-day fast, ended their fast by visiting the memorial on Sunday. Members of the Forward Bloc led by Usilampatti MLA Kathiravan also paid tributes.

The CPM’s urban district secretary Ramakrishnan, members Devaraj, Sellakannu, women’s wing member Muthurani and others visited the memorial. The Congress also had its local representatives, including Usilampatti town president Deepa Pandi, and Murugan paying tributes.

Bharathiraja performed the pooja for his movie ‘Kuttraparambarai’ (criminal tribe) in Usilampatti at a function that was attended by many from the film industry. Tight security arrangements had been made at the venue.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Madurai / TNN / April 04th, 2016