My dear Comrades, you have invited me to inaugurate this well as a sign of honouring me but I have actually come here, unwilling to inaugurate it. However, I am participating in this event of festivity with great hesitation and feeling belittled merely to satisfy you all.
In my opinion, digging a separate well for Harijan community is an atrocity. This would declare and confirm that the Harijans are inferior to us and that they do not deserve to cohabit with us. A separate well for them would be like casting them away by erecting a fence. This would remain indelible in everyone’s memory.
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Why should a separate well be dug for them? It would only help some hypocrites make a show of their social service. They just pretend to care for the welfare of Harijans only to be talked about as big people in society.
Why should we not allow Harijans to draw water from our wells? Don’t birds and beasts drink the water in tanks? Don’t you know where tanks get water from? Don’t you know what such water contains? What harm would be caused if Harijans drink the water from common wells? I urge upon you all to think over this moot point.
Periyar in ‘Kudi Arasu’ 25th April 1926
