The Central Government's recent use of the term Kongu Nadu for identification of a region of Tamil Nadu has raised many eyebrows. The BJP Unit Chief L Murugan was associated with this region earlier who is in the list of Union Ministers recently chosen now.
It must however be noted that no such Kongu Nadu is in existence as yet neither has any government talked about inching a Union Territory out of Tamil Nadu.
In the list released by the Centre for the reshuffling of the cabinet, every minister was named with the place of his / her dwelling. In Front of Murugan, the name Kongu Nadu was mentioned which created a buzz.
People went against such a display of power by the Center but there were various supporters too.
Kongu Nadu region consists of just a few districts since ancient Tamilakam. It is also inhabited by Tamil speakers in olden times as they were a part of the same kingdom.
The centre has still not talked about the constitution of Kongu Nadu and it is said that BJP wishes to make it into Hindutva nation.
After the Coimbatore blasts happened in 1997, the right wing groups have developed their presence in Kongu belt.
What happened in Coimbatore?
Competitive communalism and failure of the state policy in response to grievances and dangers were the reason for the most deadly terrorist attack that Tamil Nadu has witnessed.
The attack was carried out on February 14, 1998. The blasts were blamed on the Muslim fundamentalist groups as the attacks were made after 3 months of killing 18 Muslims in the city in November-December 1997. BJP spokesperson have however said that the party will not bifurcate Tamil Nadu as of now.
Kongu Nadu: Details
Kongu Nadu is treated as a separate country in the Sangam Literature. Also called as Kongu Mandalam, it is a geographical region that consists of Palani, Karur, Dharapuram, Thiruchengodu, Erode, Pollachi, Namakkal, Salm, Dharmapuri, Nilgiris, Avinashi, Sathyamangalam, Coimbatore, Udumalaipet. These districts are a part of the South Western part of Tamil Nadu.
It is not a formal region although the name is commonly used for the part of Western Tamil Nadu.
In ancient times, it was a part of five regions of Tamil Nadu.
The name Kongu Nadu is derived from Kongu Vellala Gounder, which is an OBC community that has significant presence in these districts.
This region also includes various businesses and industrial hubs like Namakkal, Salem, Tirupur and Coimbatore.
Why is the debate on Kongu Nadu baseless?
There has been no demand for the state or Union Territory of Kongu Nadu in the modern political history of India. There is no political, social or economical context to this debate. Moreover the Central government has denied the need to divide the state.As said by many political leaders also have supported the cause.
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