Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi on Sunday alleged DMK leader R S Bharathi has "insulted" the Naga people as "dog eaters," which is scurrilous and unacceptable.
Governor Ravi's remark was posted on 'X' by TN Raj Bhavan. It said: "Nagas are brave, honest and dignified people. Thiru R S Bharathi a senior DMK leader publicly insulting them as ‘Dog eaters’ is scurrilous and unacceptable. I urge Mr Bharathi not to hurt a community of which the whole of India is proud." The Raj Bhavan also posted a video clip of Bharathi's comment.
Bharathi in an event prefaced his remark as 'only an example' and underscored that it should not be mistaken.
When the people of Nagaland, who eat dog meat, with so much sense of dignity, chased Ravi and made him run away from that state, the Tamil people's sense of dignity, who eat rice with salt, should not be forgotten, the DMK leader purportedly said.
Ravi was "driven out" of Nagaland by the people of the north eastern state and they celebrated his exit like the Deepavali festival, according to the video clip posted on 'X'.
A former Rajya Sabha MP, Bharathi is also the DMK's organisation secretary. He made the remark at a party event held to mark the centenary of late party patriarch M Karunanidhi.