Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Sunday, December 21, alleged that the Union government was blocking archaeological research that could establish Tamil Nadu as the cradle of Indian civilisation, framing it as “a 2,000-year-old fight” between Aryans and Dravidians. He was addressing a party meeting at Tirunelveli Government College.
“I am ecstatic about the Porunai Museum. Porunai showcases the greatness of Tamil Nadu. We have demonstrated, with evidence, that the historical record of India must begin in Tamil Nadu. We are repeatedly witnessing how the BJP-led Union government is obstructing historical research that proves the antiquity of Tamil civilisation, including at Keeladi,” Stalin said.
He further alleged that the Union government was working to ensure that evidence establishing the historicity of the Tamil people does not come to light.
“We have been fighting this Tamil hatred and anti-Tamil bias. Those who search for a Saraswati civilisation that does not exist are blind to the evidence we have placed before them. We cannot abandon our responsibility or our struggle. This is a 2,000-year-old fight, and we will not lose it. We will continue to place the facts before the people,” he said.
Stalin also said that despite an announcement in the 2021 Union Budget to establish a museum at Adichanellur, no work had been undertaken so far. In contrast, he said, the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology had carried out excavations at Sivakalai and established the Porunai Museum on 13 acres of land, with a built-up area of 54,696 square feet.
He also invited the Union Finance Minister and the Union Home Minister to visit the Porunai Museum and Keeladi.