A political controversy has been triggered by a video of hate speech featuring Kongunadu Makkal Desiya Katchi’s Namakkal Parliamentary constituency candidate S. Suriamoorthi. In the video, shared widely on social media, he is heard speaking out against inter-caste relationships involving Scheduled Caste youth prompting questions on how such a candidate could be fielded by the INDIA bloc led by the DMK. Mr. Suriamoorthi is to contest on the DMK’s ‘Rising Sun’ symbol.
However, KMDK general secretary E.R. Eswaran claimed that the video was ‘fake’.
In the video, Mr. Suriamoorthi is heard saying that Scheduled Caste youth should not think about ‘getting rich’ by marrying women from Gounder community and threatens to murder SC youth and the Gounder women for falling in love.
Dalit and human rights activists and others slammed the decision to field him in Namakkal parliamentary constituency despite Mr. Suriamoorthi’s extremist views about caste.
Mr. Eswaran, however, claimed to The Hindu that the video allegedly featuring him was fake.
“Many years ago, the video was declared as fake by the court. I have asked him to give a clarification regarding the same along with the court order. He will make a statement tomorrow,” he said.
Asked to comment, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi general secretary D. Ravikumar said Mr. Suriamoorthi should be made to clarify his position whether he continues to hold such views.
“Since it is a speech from the past, we don’t know if he still holds those views at present. It is up to the media to ask him for a clarification whether he still believes in what he says in the video,” he said.
