No foothold for divisive forces in TN, even under garb of copycat Murugan conference, says Sekarbabu

CHENNAI: Taking a dig at the BJP and other Hindu right wing elements, HR&CE Minister PK Sekarbabu on Thursday said that the people of Tamil Nadu are well aware of the divisive forces at play and will reject and "chase them away" for attempting to sow discord along religious, caste, or linguistic lines.

"Our work is not about dividing people in the name of religion. On the contrary, it ensures every individual the right to practice their faith and worship the deity of their choice without hindrance," the minister said on Thursday, after inspecting the construction of a new three-storey school building at Ekambareswarar Matriculation School in Kilpauk, built at a cost of Rs 11.15 crore by the department.

Taking a swipe at the BJP, Sekarbabu said the decision to organise a Murugan conference in Madurai was a response to the successful Muthamizh Murugan International Conference hosted by the HR&CE department under the Dravidian model government in August last year. "It is the impact of that successful event that has pushed them to follow suit," he said. He, however, added that the TN people would not fall for such tactics or divisive narratives.

Sekarbabu also criticised Leader of the Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami for his recent remarks on restrictions for local devotees at the Rameswaram temple.

"His statements reflect a lack of understanding and show clearly that he makes comments without knowing the ground reality. There are no restrictions for local devotees. Even now, they are being allowed special access to offer prayers. Hence, I prefer not to respond to his baseless remarks," he said mockingly that Palaniswami should visit Rameswaram and understand the actual situation before issuing statements.