After razing of Periyar statue in Tamil Nadu, BJP’s H Raja clarifies on Facebook post

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader H Raja, who landed in controversy over a Facebook post talking about razing of ‘Periyar’ EV Ramasamy, on Wednesday issued a clarification saying the status was posted on the social networking website without his permission.

“The post on my Facebook page was done by one of the admins without my permission. As soon as I came to know about it, I deleted the post,” he told mediapersons on Wednesday morning.

Raja further said, “We have to respond through statements and opinions not through violence. It is not correct to deface statue of Periyar.”

Just hours after the threat on his verified Facebook page, a statue of Periyar was vandalised in Tirupattur in Tamil Nadu. Two drunk men were arrested for the incident. While one is believed to be a BJP worker, the other is reportedly a CPI member.

Police identified the two men as Muthuraman and Francis. Muthuraman is believed to the be the BJP worker, while Francis is a CPI activist. Their common motivation is unclear.

The statue they attack was a bust of Periyar, the likes of which can be regularly found in villages and towns across Tamil Nadu.

Raja's threat came in a post on his verified Facebook page. "Who is Lenin? How is he connected to India? How is communism connected to India? The Lenin statue was razed in Tripura. Today it is a Lenin statue in Tripura. Tomorrow, it will be the statue of caste-crazed EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu," read his post, that was deleted after the fiery backlash.

The post attracted immediate reaction. "They are not even fit to touch a statue of Periyar. H Raja is a prominent leader of the BJP, and has often made these sort of statements, which are aimed at inciting violence," said DMK working president MK Stalin. "Going by the law, H Raja should be arrested under the Goondas Act and thrown in jail," he added.