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Periyar joins the Indian National Congress

· Erode

Periyar joins the Indian National Congress
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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.

E. V. Ramasamy, a merchant and public figure in Erode, joined the Indian National Congress in 1919. He took part in Gandhian campaigns such as the promotion of khadi and temperance. He remained in the Congress until 1925, when he left over the question of communal representation for non-Brahmins. He then led the Self-Respect Movement and became the central figure of the Dravidian movement.

Related events

  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. 1924

    1. 1924CheranmahadeviSocial Reform

      Cheranmadevi Gurukulam controversy

      Separate dining for Brahmin and non-Brahmin students at a Congress-funded gurukulam at Cheranmadevi caused a major controversy.

  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.

    2. 1925KanchipuramSocial Reform

      Periyar leaves Congress and starts the Self-Respect Movement

      After his resolution on communal representation was not allowed at the Kanchipuram conference, E. V. Ramasamy left the Congress and began the Self-Respect Movement.

  4. 1931

    1. 29 Mar 1931ErodeLiterature

      Kudi Arasu editorial on Bhagat Singh's execution

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

  5. 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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