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Kudi Arasu editorial on Bhagat Singh's execution

· Erode

Kudi Arasu editorial on Bhagat Singh's execution
Kudiyarasu Magazine edited by Periyar. E. V. Ramasamy, Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Writing in Kudi Arasu, Periyar faulted Gandhi over Bhagat Singh's execution, a sign of the journal's increasingly leftist stance.

Periyar started the Tamil journal Kudi Arasu in 1925, and it carried writing on rationalism, caste and socialism, among it articles by M. Singaravelu. An editorial of 29 March 1931 saw Periyar criticise Mahatma Gandhi over Bhagat Singh's death. More than once the Madras government banned the journal on grounds of sedition and spreading communism.

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  1. 1879

    1. 17 Sep 1879ErodeSocial Reform

      Birth of E. V. Ramasamy (Periyar)

      E. V. Ramasamy, later known as Periyar, founder of the Self-Respect Movement and the Dravidar Kazhagam, was born at Erode.

  2. 1919

    1. 1919ErodePolitics

      Periyar joins the Indian National Congress

      E. V. Ramasamy of Erode, later known as Periyar, joined the Indian National Congress, beginning a political career that later led to the Self-Respect Movement.

  3. 1925

    1. 2 May 1925ErodeCulture

      Periyar launches Kudi Arasu

      E. V. Ramasamy began publishing the Tamil weekly Kudi Arasu, which became the main voice of the Self-Respect Movement.

  4. 1929

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      First Provincial Self-Respect Conference at Chengalpattu

      The first provincial conference of the Self-Respect Movement at Chengalpattu passed resolutions against caste and for women's rights.

  5. 1931

    1. Dec 1931 to Nov 1932Soviet UnionPolitics

      Periyar tours Europe and the Soviet Union

      Periyar E. V. Ramasamy toured Europe and spent three months in the Soviet Union, an experience that shaped his later politics.

  6. 1935

    1. 1935ErodeLaw Justice

      Tamil translation of 'Why I am an Atheist' banned

      Bhagat Singh's 'Why I am an Atheist' in Tamil was banned by the Madras government, which also arrested the translator and the publisher.

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