Chennai: More than 100 years ago, Mahatma Gandhi made a historic decision in Tamil Nadu to ditch his vest and cap and instead wear a khadi loincloth, or dhoti, to connect with the poorest of the poor.
Today, another Gandhi is driving the handloom and textiles sector in the southern state—but that’s probably where the similarity between the two Gandhis ends.
While Mahatma Gandhi is known for values such as self-sacrifice and renunciation, his namesake in Tamil Nadu, the state’s Minister for Handlooms and Textiles, R. Gandhi, has courted his fair share of political controversies and graft allegations.
Most recently, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader sparked a controversy last week after a video of his comments on karma in a speech on 1 August went viral.
“Only individuals who have sinned in their past life will have sons, whereas those who are blessed will have daughters,” the textiles minister said at a school event to distribute free bicycles to students in his constituency, Ranipet.
Though R. Gandhi spoke over a month ago, the video only began circulating after a motivational speaker’s arrest over remarks about karma and sin at a government school in Chennai in which he allegedly blamed children for their struggles in life.
The controversy comes months after the minister found himself in the line of fire in connection with a decades-old government scheme to distribute free dhotis and sarees to people living below the poverty line before Pongal.
In February, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president K. Annamalai alleged the textiles minister was involved in the misappropriation of about Rs 60 crore in the procurement of free dhotis under the Priceless Saree and Dhoti Distribution Scheme.
He had filed a complaint with the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) and asked for a probe into the matter. No case has been filed until now.
Annamalai had also alleged that the minister was responsible for manipulating the production method of the free dhotis and increasing the amount of polyester in the textiles.
“The dhoti is supposed to be cotton and the border of the dhoti alone can be in polyester. But we tested the free dhotis distributed this year and found there was only 22 percent cotton and the rest 68 percent was made of polyester,” he had said. “It is found that the minister has compelled handloom and powerloom owners to use polyester instead of cotton.”
R. Gandhi had said he would face the complaint legally and clarified the production process was in line with guidelines.
Increasing profits
Despite the controversies, the DMK leader is credited with making the Tamil Nadu Handloom Weavers’ Cooperative Society, popularly known as Co-optex, more profitable than under the previous government.
Co-optex was established in 1935 and has gone through many financial ups and downs in these 89 years. It was saddled with losses of about Rs 80 crore in the early 2000s but managed to turn a profit for five straight years after 2014.
“Due to a lack of enthusiasm and failure to keep pace with emerging trends, the society incurred a loss of around Rs 7 crore by the end of the previous government,” a Co-optex official told ThePrint.
Since the DMK came into power, the government has made significant changes such as the introduction of a small savings scheme, which has benefited both the organisation and its members.
It has also increased funding and made policy changes, such as transferring the society’s employees to the government’s payroll, the Co-optex official said.
Though the shift was a financial strain initially, it ultimately proved profitable. Co-optex posted a profit three years in a row: its profits increased from Rs 9.49 crore in 2021-2022 to Rs 10 crore in 2022-2023 and then significantly higher at about Rs 23 crore in 2023-2024.
To promote the handoom and textile industry, the government allocated the highest-ever Rs 1,212.58 crore for the handloom department and Rs 11.46 crore for the textile department in the 2024-25 state budget.
“However, almost 50 percent of the funds allocated to the handloom department are being spent on the dhotis and sarees distributed at the time of Pongal. The rest is spent on pensions of weavers and maintenance of other schemes,” said a senior official of the handloom department.
The dhoti-and-saree scheme was introduced by former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran in 1983, but both the Dravidian parties—the DMK and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK)—have continued with it as there are about 1.77 crore beneficiaries in the state.
“It was not only beneficial to the people but also to the huge weaving community in the state. The dhotis and sarees are procured from traditional weavers. Weavers across the state benefit since we procure them through our cooperative societies,” said the official.
Turnaround in financial fortunes
Many in the party say R. Gandhi has helped turn around the Co-optex’s fortunes since he became textiles minister. DMK functionaries in Ranipet district give the minister the credit for his rise from a lorry cleaner to a state cabinet minister.
R. Gandhi first entered the assembly in 1996 from one of the state’s oldest constituencies, Ranipet, and has grown to become the face of the region in the past five years.
Since then, he has contested five times and has won thrice. But this is the first time R. Gandhi has entered the state cabinet as Minister for Handlooms and Textiles after winning the seat in 2021.
“In his early days, he worked as a cleaner of lorries and later worked in petrol pumps in the Ranipet locality. However, with his interest in politics and his strong inclination towards former chief ministers Anna and Kalaignar, he joined politics,” said Muthusamy, a local party functionary in Ranipet district.
“Even on a small occasion, he never forgets to remember Periyar, former chief ministers Annadurai and Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi.”
R. Gandhi is a staunch follower of Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, a former Congressman who later launched the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam, the DMK’s parent body.
Lately, speculation has grown within the DMK that R. Gandhi might be moved out of his portfolio in a cabinet reshuffle.
“He was made minister in-charge of Tiruvallur district in the party. However, he did not live up to the expectations of the chief minister in the recently held Lok Sabha polls. So, somebody from the same region is likely to get a ministerial berth during the cabinet shuffle,” a highly placed source in the DMK told ThePrint.
ThePrint reached R. Gandhi for comment via phone calls and messages. However, he did not respond.
Gandhi vs Gandhi
As textiles minister, R. Gandhi may share a name and handlooms with the Mahatma, but the two leaders are like chalk and cheese otherwise.
While the Father of the Nation promoted nationalism, R. Gandhi bats for autonomy for the state government and federalism at the Centre.
Unlike Mahatma Gandhi, who brought the concept of satyagraha and a non-violent protest culture to India with his movement against British rule, the Tamil Nadu minister is on the other side of the fence.
As handloom and textiles minister, he has to deal with protests from handloom and powerloom weavers in the state.
Today, Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy in the Tamil Nadu handloom sector remains etched in most minds.
Many remember the story about how the Mahatma was on a train to Madurai from Madras (present-day Chennai) on 22 September, 1921, when he pleaded with some passengers to wear handspun khadi, a fabric that became the symbol of self-reliance and the freedom movement.
Mahatma Gandhi later wrote that the passengers replied, “We are too poor to buy khadi and it is so dear.”
The next day, the Congress leader sprang a surprise on people when he came out in a simple khadi loincloth instead of his traditional attire. His puzzled followers later learnt that he had decided to give up his traditional attire to be with the poorest man.
The house where Gandhi adopted his clothing identity belonged to one of his followers until Independence. Today, in a fitting tribute, it is a khadi store run by the Tamil Nadu government.
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)
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