Decode Politics: Government to ideology to archaeology, what is Stalin’s ‘Dravidian Model’

Announcing the new international airport at Hosur on Thursday, Chief Minister M K Stalin again spoke of a “Dravidian Model of Governance”.

“Since the establishment of our Dravidian Model of Governance, Tamil Nadu has been advancing in all sectors,” he said, adding that the state is implementing various long-term plans to transform Hosur into a major economic development hub by developing modern infrastructure.

Days earlier, after the DMK-led alliance swept Tamil Nadu in the recent Lok Sabha elections, winning all the 39 seats in the state, Stalin called the win a resounding mandate to this 'Dravidian Model'.

Stalin’s project

Since he became CM for the first time, climbing out of the large shadow of his father M Karunanidhi, Stalin has courted a distinct image of himself as an upholder of “Dravidian interests”. This serves him well to position himself and his party in staunch opposition to the BJP and its ideology.

Soon after he took charge in May 2021, Stalin added the words “Belongs to Dravidian Stock” to his Twitter profile. This phrase harked back to a speech made by C N Annadurai, one of the founders of the DMK, in Parliament 59 years ago.

On completion of a year in government, Stalin first floated the claim to a 'Dravidian Model of Governance', releasing newspaper advertisements, including in the national capital, talking about the same.

In January 2023, this framing was at the centre of a flare-up between the DMK government and Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi after the latter skipped two portions referring to “Dravidian Model of Development” during his customary speech at the start of an Assembly Session.

After the Tamil Nadu Budget was presented in 2023, Stalin said it “was a complete example of the Dravidian Model”. “When asked about the meaning of the Dravidian Model, I said it was an inclusive growth model. The Budget remains an example of the ideology of this model,” he said in a statement.

DMK organisational push

The idea of a 'Dravidian Model' is not just limited to statements by top DMK leaders. On May 15, 2023, the DMK held a workshop for party workers titled ‘Dravidian Model is the National Model’ in Coimbatore, where former Union minister A Raja directly pitted this model against the BJP’s. The latter’s governance, he said, was an example of the ‘Aryan Model’: “regressive and divisive”.

Raja also said that the dreams of B R Ambedkar had been defeated by the ‘Aryan Model’, but that Tamil Nadu’s ‘Dravidian Model’ had kept them alive.

Cultural aspect

Besides, two archaeological digs in Tamil Nadu suggesting human settlements dating back as far as the Indus Valley Civilization or older, find the state and Centre arranged along the touchy Dravidian vs Aryan debate.

In a reference to the carbon-dating of cultural deposits found at the Mayiladumparai excavation site in Krishnagiri district, Stalin has said that the history of India be rewritten with the “Tamil land” as the starting point.

The carbon-dating of deposits at the site put the use of iron in India to 4,200 years ago, the DMK government said. Before this, the earliest evidence of iron use was 1900-2000 BCE for the country, and 1500 BCE for Tamil Nadu. The latest evidence dates the findings from Tamil Nadu to 2172 BCE.

In 2019, a landmark finding at the sites, including Keeladi near Madurai, put the origins of the Tamil Brahmi scripts as 600 BCE, compared to around 300 BCE as believed earlier. This dating narrowed the gap between the Indus Valley Civilization and Tamilagam/South India’s Sangam Age.

The dating of the scripts was surrounded by a row as the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had earlier not proceeded with advanced carbon-dating tests, with an ASI researcher who initiated the study transferred out of the state.

The DMK government, on the other hand, opened its purse strings to the state Archaeology Department to explore the digs at both Mayiladumparai and Keeladi.

For the latest news from across India, Political updates, Explainers, Sports News, Opinion, Entertainment Updates and more Top News, visit Indian Express. Subscribe to our award-winning Newsletter Download our App here Android & iOS