K Karunanidhi

In the name of Hindutva, attempts are being made indirectly to incite communal passions," the DMK chief told an election rally in Chennai.

DMK president M Karunanidhi on Thursday night said attempts were being made to communalise the nation in the name of "Hindutva" and cautioned people against falling into the hands of "religious fanatics".

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"Whether Hindus, Muslims, Christians or Sikhs, the people of the country are all Indians. But in the name of Hindutva, attempts are being made indirectly to incite communal passions," he told an election rally here without naming any party.

"Leaders like Advani at the time of Gujarat Assembly elections declared that the country was not a nation of Hindus alone. But now they are talking about Hindu rashtra," he said, adding "targetting" other religions by talking about only one religion was not the ideology of leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Ambedkar and "Periyar" (EV Ramasamy).

He said the Democratic People's Alliance, led by the DMK in the state, stood for communal amity and secularism.

Canvassing support for party's Central Chennai Lok Sabha constituency candidate Dayanidhi Maran, son of his nephew and late Union Minister Murasoli Maran, the DMK chief said he attended the meeting not for his grand son but as the member of the assembly segment coming under the constituency.