South India is "safe house" of Indian culture, says Rajnath Singh in Chennai

Chennai: South India is the "safe house" of the Indian culture, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Chennai on Saturday.
Singh attended the Thirumurai Festival at a banquet hall in Chennai, where he also addressed the gathering.
"The way South India has preserved our Indian culture is definitely praiseworthy. There will be no exaggeration if I call South India, the 'Cultural Fortress of Bharat'. South India is the "safe house" of the Indian culture," he said.
He added that Thirumurai is an occasion that commemorates the profound spiritual teachings encapsulated within the Thirumurai, a revered collection of hymns written by Shaiva saints from the 6th to the 11th century. These verses stand as an eternal reservoir of spiritual wisdom.
"PM Modi's commitment to the Tamil traditions is reflected in his initiative of enshrining the sacred Sengol in the new Parliament, the sanctum sanctorum of the Indian democracy," he said.
Prime Minister Modi has consistently emphasized the contribution of Tamil people and their rich culture to the Indian identity. His deep personal affinity and emotional attachment to the great Tamil traditions is known to everyone, he added.
The Defence Minister further said that questioning the oneness of Bharat is a wrong idea, a bad idea. The disruptive and secessionist tendencies that have emerged are being effectively addressed by PM Modi, who is reinforcing the national fabric of our cultural unity. This misguided interrogation of India's national and cultural identity is historically inaccurate and thus betrays either a lack of understanding of the cultural nationalism in the Indian context, or a profound hatred for all things Indian.