Youth Welfare and Sports Development Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sunday solemnised ‘self-respect’ marriage of 81 couples here and credited the DMK for materialising what he described as the ideal of reformist leader Periyar.
Former DMK leaders Anna and Kalaignar Karunanidhi endorsed and legalised ‘self-respect’ marriages where after the practice came to be accepted as a union based on equal rights for bride and bridegroom, he said.
Flanked by Electricity Minister V. Senthilbalaji and other dignitaries, Mr. Udhayanidhi handed over to the newly-married couples the immediate necessities, including vessels, essential groceries, and furniture items, to start a family.
Seeking to take a dig at AIADMK, he said the very marriage ceremony he was a part of signified DMK’s commitment to the people irrespective of elections. The AIADMK, he said, was in hibernation, and surfaced only at the time of election.
Mr. Udhayanidhi Stalin also kicked off the SARAS (Sale of Articles of Rural Artisans Society) Fair, a joint venture by the Centre and State, here on Sunday. The Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Department set up 80 stalls — for 27 women’s self-help groups (SHGs) from other states, and 37 SHGs from several districts in Tamil Nadu including 13 from Coimbatore.
COMMents
SHARE