evidence: Ever since the DMK came back to power in Tamil Nadu in 2021, it has focused on countering the anti-Hindu tag a section of its opponents have tried to stick on it. It has appointed PK Sekar Babu as minister for the Hindu religious and charitable endowments department and has touted the government’s achievements in retrieving encroached temple land, developing them, raising the pension for their retired staff, and providing aid for the needy through temples. [...] Last week, the state’s HR&CE department conducted a two-day conference on Lord Muruga. The intent was clearly to establish that the party was not against any religion and that it could celebrate a Hindu deity—especially one considered a Tamil god, one who is mentioned in Sangam literature—and therefore Tamil language and culture. [...] The political fallout was swift. Some of the DMK’s allies questioned if the secular state government should have conducted such an event and, even if it was conducted by a government department, if senior ministers should have attended.