Kanimozhi To Receive Prestigious Periyar Award At DMK's Mupperum Vizha Celebrations

At the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's (DMK) Mupperum Vizha celebrations in Karur on September 17, MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi will be conferred the Periyar Award in recognition of her contributions to the Dravidian movement. According to party sources, the honour was an acknowledgement and appreciation of her consistent advocacy of language rights, federalism, and social justice in Parliament and public life - causes that remain central to the DMK's politics.

The award, named after rationalist leader EV Ramasamy "Periyar", has historically been given to those who embody the ideals of social reform, rationalism, and resistance to oppression. By selecting Kanimozhi, the DMK signals both recognition of her personal political trajectory and the continuation of the movement's ideological legacy.

Since entering Parliament in 2007, Kanimozhi has been a strong voice against Hindi imposition and for the protection of Tamil identity within India's pluralist fabric. She has spoken extensively on fiscal federalism and state autonomy, arguing that centralisation erodes the federal balance. During a recent language policy row, she declared that "unity in diversity is India's national language," a statement widely seen as summing up the Dravidian position on India's cultural plurality.

The timing of the award also underscores her rising national profile. In August, Kanimozhi criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for glorifying the RSS in his Independence Day address, led the party's attack on the Election Commission on the Special Intensive Revision matter and rebutted the BJP's alleged glorification of the Cholas. On the contentious issue of delimitation, she has warned that Tamil Nadu's share of Lok Sabha seats could drop from 7.18 percent to 5.7 percent, raising concerns about reduced southern representation despite Union assurances.

Within the DMK, Kanimozhi's stature has grown steadily. Earlier this year, she was allotted a private office at Arivalayam, the party headquarters in Chennai, just like senior leaders of the party, such as Duraimurugan or KN Nehru and TR Baalu. Party insiders noted that this was not just administrative but symbolic of her expanding role as deputy general secretary and parliamentary party leader.

Party sources said the Periyar Award is meant to underline the continuity of the Dravidian movement's central ideals - opposition to caste oppression, patriarchy, and linguistic domination.