Dr. K. Veeramani
President, Dravidar Kazhagam
(The Speech delivered by Dr.K. Veeramani, President, Dravidar Kazhagam, Tamil Nadu in Video format was played at the Condolence & Portrait Unveiling Meet held at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on 25th February 2024)
My beloved friends, atheist friends, comrades and all those who are in deep sorrow over the sudden passing away of the late, lamented Jayagopal, I convey my heartfelt condolence and share your grief. My sincere condolence to the bereaved members of his family too.
Thiru. Jayagopal, eminent leader of the Atheist Movement and a pivotal comrade, was a humanist ‘par excellence’. He was always a person with conviction and courage. He was ready to sacrifice his life for any great cause. He swam against the currents of life. Inspite of the fact that he had vast and extensive knowledge in the principles of rationalism, atheism and humanism, he had never aspired for any post, position or personal gains. He lived for society. He wanted to build a society which is without castes; without any discriminations. Humanism is the basis for rationalism and atheism.
If everything is ordained by God, then where is the question of accusing human beings for their criminal actions? An individual’s actions has nothing to do with his theism. That is why, as a rationalist and as a humanist, Jayagopal questioned the old, worn out, outdated and dilapidated concepts and wanted to demolish them. He sacrificed his entire life for that noble cause.
Jayagopal knew four languages Telugu, Tamil, English & Hindi very well. Inspite of his deep knowledge, he used language skills to spread theism and rationalism. He was always a very close associate, a fellow traveller and a co-fighter in our movement. He was always with our movement. He was very kind in encouraging the youth. He brought many youth into his Association. He convinced many of them and converted them. The comradeship that he developed will last long. By his conviction and resolve, he still lives among us inspite of his passing away.
It is very great honour for him that he had been the recipient of many coveted awards, such as the Babasaheb Ambedkar Award and many International awards. He deserved them very much because he neither aspired for them nor had been longing for them. He was service oriented. He never back-tracked under any circumstance. He had always been an exemplary person.
It is really amazing how a person could have been committed with the principles which many may not subscribe. Very few people would generally be the supporters. He knew it very well. Inspite of this fact, he was not merely one among the crowd. He wanted to create a new society. He wanted to swim against the current of rivalry and opposition. That is why, in my belief, he lives in our hearts for ever and ever.
It was a great misery and shock for us when we heard he was suffering from certain ailments. For quite a long time, he was bed ridden, undergoing treatment. Otherwise, he generally used to be very active in the early days. He used to visit Chennai often and meet us to discuss many policy issues. He also used to work out plans for a few common programmes. He was instrumental in erecting the statue of Thanthai Periyar at Visakhapatnam. He invited us for the unveiling event.
Since he knew Tamil, he used to read our official organ ‘Viduthalai’ – which means ‘Liberation’ – and translate many articles and statements into Telugu. He also used to bring many youngsters to Periyar Thidal in Chennai. He created many new young cadres and inculcated in them commitment and conviction. So, his passing away is not only a loss for the Atheist Society of India which he founded but a great loss to the entire Andhra. It is equally a great loss for the Dravidian Movement also; particularly for the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK), which is nothing but a humanist organisation.
So we request all our friends, comrades and well-wishers in Andhra – create a great memorial for him. What is the fittest memorial? Memorials may be of many kinds. But the fittest memorial is to continue his mission, and to strengthen his organisation. Many more branches of the Atheist Society of India could be opened and his policies could be spread by holding meetings, if and when there is a necessity. You can all organise peaceful agitations also so that they could convert and convince people of Andhra Pradesh and elsewhere too.
We are rationalists, humanists and atheists. We don’t believe in ‘Athma’; we don’t believe in ‘Soul’; we don’t believe in God; we don’t believe in superstitions – but we believe in mutual love and affection. We are very particular about how humanity benefits out of compassion.
Compassion and companionship are the two vital virtues that Atheism always insists upon. Jayagopal was doing it. He was working for that. That is why, we all feel, the grief over his passing away is not confined to Andhra alone.
It is widespread in all places; wherever Atheists are there; wherever the spread of rationalism is there. We would certainly feel hurt over his physical absence, but mentally he will be remembered for ever as a warrior.
We still have to win many more battles and wars. We will have to hold our flag very highly. That is the way to show our respect to the departed leader. At the same time, our organisation, which is a people oriented organisation in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere, would like to honour him with an Award on behalf of our Movement. We selected him for it long ago but he could not even move then because of his confinement to bed and later hospitalisation.
We would be doing now what we were unable to do then. We have decided to confer on him a posthumous Award – PERIYAR AWARD. This would shortly be awarded in a grand manner. We shall hold a function, inviting all his friends and comrades from Andhra, and his family members too. This would be a good consolation, not only for his family but also for us. That is why we want to hold him in high respect and carve a niche. He has already carved a niche, in his own way, in the history of the Atheist Movement of India.
That is why, Jayagopal is a name that will always be remembered. It will always be a great motivating force. We wish not only to condole his passing away but through holding a meeting we wish to infuse courage in all his friends and comrades to inspire them and make them realise that they must lead the movement. We must carry the torch further and travel on the road less travelled. Our movement would always be with his organisation and exhibit compassion and companionship.
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