MADURAI: As a senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, he is popular in Tamil Nadu. With decades of dedication for the nation, he is a prominent voice in the Sangh Parivar. Presently, being a Rajya Sabha MP, this seasoned intellectual politician is well noted in the corridors of power in New Delhi and of course at the party’s national level.
But, Mr.L.Ganesan’s imprint is not just in his home State Tamil Nadu alone or in the literary circles he is busy with. His voice is already with the Tamil diaspora having been invited to various countries and he is now ready for a larger role beyond the borders in his capacity as party MP in the house of elders.
“Recently, I have been put on the external affairs committee since I have expressed by interest to work for Tamil diaspora. I could have asked for any other committee but being from Tamil Nadu, my goal is to do something for people of Tamil origin. Being a member of this committee of the Government of India, my role will be to work for the Tamil people living in SAARC countries,” he said during an interaction with ‘Lotus Times’ in Madurai on April 8th, 2017.
How did he get interest to work with Tamil diaspora?. This, he says, is not sudden or something new. As general secretary (organisation) of the Tamil Nadu BJP in the early 90s, Mr.LG used to address press conferences and became the face of the party in the State. That provided him a larger reach since he became familiar in Sri Lanka which was at the peak of unrest at that time. Tamils from that country used to meet him when they come to Chennai and he understood the issues faced by Tamil population. He had even arranged for a meeting between a few individuals from the island nation and veteran L.K.Advani who was at the helm of party affairs.
“As a State leader, I briefed our party’ national leaders, and the BJP leaders from Tamil Nadu were more vocal in extending their solidarity to people of Tamil origin. That was how my days with diaspora started,” he narrates. While focusing on the Tamils’ turmoil in Sri Lanka, Mr.Ganesan also set his eyes on his literary passion which took him to Malaysia ten years ago where he addressed the Tamils there on Thirukkural. In Singapore, he delivered a memorial lecture on Mu.Ve.Swaminatha Aiyar and in Sydney he took part in Subramanya Bharathi celebration meetings. The BJP leader’s sojourn went to Dubai also for Krishna Jayanthi event.
His growing influence among the Tamil diaspora was more evident when he went to Sri Lanka after Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister in 2014. “A Sri Lankan Minister came to see me to discuss about Tamils’ issues and the Mayor of Jaffna also met me at the place where I was staying. The Mayor told me that I am a popular face of Tamil Nadu concerned for Tamil people.”
During that visit, Mr.LG went in an auto from one hotel to another in Colombo and when he asked about the condition of Tamil population, the reply from auto-driver was that confidence among the people increased after Modi became PM and there is a ray of hope only because of Modi.
The Tamil diaspora is strong in numbers with their presence extending far and wide across the globe. Countries including Australia, Canada, Fiji, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka etc are only a few examples to show Tamil contingents in various continents. And, this Tamil diaspora is close to Mr.LG due to his consistent efforts in reaching out to the cause of Tamils and their issues.
“From now on, as member of the external affairs committee I want to play a much active role in organising cultural festivals, literary events etc for our Tamil people living outside India and also be a link between Tamils and the Government of India. “There is a bigger opportunity for me now as MP in Rajya Sabha and I will utilise it fully to work for Tamil diaspora,” Mr.Ganesan says.
