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Karti Chidambaram said the term “Sanatan” carries a different meaning in Tamil Nadu and is often associated with caste hierarchy rather than religious practice.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram
Amid the growing controversy, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram has dismissed allegations that Tamil Nadu is hostile to Sanatan Dharma. He said people in the state are “more Hindu than North Indians”.
The BJP has often accused the Congress, its ally the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, and other INDIA bloc partners of being “anti-Sanatan Dharma”.
“What is Sanatan? That is not a term anyone in Tamil Nadu uses,” Chidambaram told ANI. “We are more Hindu than North Indians. Per square kilometre, we have more temples. We break more coconuts every day.”
He added, “I personally visit more temples than many people in the BJP combined. There isn’t a single day that I step out of my house without applying vibhuti or kundalama. ‘Sanatan Dharma’ is not a phrase we use.”
‘Sanatan Dharma’ term linked to caste hierarchy: Chidambaram
Chidambaram said the term “Sanatan” carries a different meaning in Tamil Nadu and is often associated with caste hierarchy rather than religious practice.
“This whole thing became a controversy because Udhayanidhi Stalin said something against this term,” he said. “In Tamil Nadu, that term means caste hierarchy. That is how we use it.”
He said that in popular usage in the state, the term refers to caste hierarchy and not to the practice of the Hindu faith. “Nobody talks about the practice of the Hindu faith,” he said.
‘No restriction on faith’
Chidambaram said there is no restriction on practising religion in Tamil Nadu.
“There is no prohibition on the practice of the faith in Tamil Nadu. Absolutely none,” he said. “Nobody can say, be it from any community, any socio-economic group, to say, my practice of the faith is fettered in Tamil Nadu.”
He said he grew up in a religious household influenced by his grandparents. “My grandmother didn’t take me to the puja room and say, come, let’s practice Sanatana,” he said, adding that spirituality in Tamil Nadu is deeply rooted even if the terminology differs.
Chidambaram rejects ‘anti-Brahmanism’ charge
Responding to criticism that the Dravidian political model amounts to “Karunanidhi family plus anti-Brahmanism”, Chidambaram rejected the claim.
“There is no anti-Brahmanism. This false victimhood of the Brahmins must stop,” he said.
He added that there is no violence, genocide or threat to the safety of Brahmins in Tamil Nadu, and no disruption of their rituals.
“Brahmins are among the most privileged people in this country, and they are very privileged in Tamil Nadu too,” he said.
Chidambaram said narratives portraying Brahmins as victims in Tamil Nadu are “completely erroneous” and maintained that religious freedom remains intact in the state.
2023 remarks by Udhayanidhi Stalin
In 2023, Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin compared “Sanatana” to diseases such as malaria and dengue and said it should be eradicated rather than opposed.
He had said, “Sanatana is like malaria and dengue, and so it must be eradicated and not opposed… Few things cannot be opposed; those should be abolished only. We can’t oppose Dengue, Mosquitoes, Malaria, or Corona, we have to eradicate them, that’s how we have to eradicate Sanatana.”
His remarks sparked a nationwide political debate.
Tamil Nadu, India, India
February 16, 2026, 10:54 IST
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