E V Ramasami Periyar (1879-1973), the great anti-caste and feminist ideologue of the previous century, like many of his colleagues elsewhere, started out his political career as a Congressman. However, to many of the policies and programs of the Congress, Ramasami had his own, usually more direct and radical interpretation. For example, untouchability meant for him caste-varna itself and the eradication he dreamed was that of the phenomenon itself. But he found, on the other hand, the Congressmen trying to isolate physical-literal untouchability as the evil to be abolished and not caste itself.