Jayanta Mahapatra Returns Padma Shri Award
By Countercurrents.org
23 November, 2015
Countercurrents.org
Jayanta Mahapatra has become the latest to join the "Award Wapsi" movement over growing "intolerance" in the country. Mahapatra returned his Padma Shri, fourth highest civilian honour in in India, won in 2009 for his contribution to literature. Jayanta Mahapatra is one of the greatest Odia litterateurs of all time.
In a letter to President Pranab Mukherjee, Mahapatra wrote, "Mine is a small, insignificant step. But it's my personal way of showing protest against growing moral asymmetry... (It) should not be considered as dishonour to the country."
He told the Hindu "since I am from a minority community surrounded by a majority community in my locality, I am unable to concentrate on my writings as I am apprehensive as to how my neighbourhood reacts to my writings”
"It's a personal decision. I thought for a long time but some incidents hurt me so much that I decided to return the award. Everyday something or the other is coming out in newspapers. You cannot eat this, you cannot eat that. It hurts me," Mahapatra told Times of India.
Four Padma Bhushan Awards, 3rd highest civilian honour in the country, three Padma Shri awards, 40 Sahitya Academi Awards given to eminent literary personalities, 36 National film Awards were returned to Narendra Modi Government as a protest in just 18 months of BJP rule. The award returning movement is dubbed as 'Award Wapsi' echoing the Hindutva ultra-nationalists’ movement called 'Ghar Wapsi' (home coming) by which people of other faiths are forcefully converted back to Hinduism.
Recently three writers were killed by fascist forces. Dr. Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and M.M.Kalburgi were killed in cold blood and none of the culprits were arrested so far.
A hysteria has been unleashed by Hindutva forces over beef eating habit of vast majority of Indians. Three people were killed over this hysteria recenlty. Mohammad Aqlaq was lynched to death in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, on the mere rumour of storing beef in his house, which later turned out to be mutton in forensic examination. Then Noman was beaten to death in the presence of police in Himachal Pradesh over the rumours that he was transporting cows. Lastly Zahid Rasool Bhat of Kashmir was killed in a petrol bomb attack over the rumour of cow slaughter.
Recently, Kerala house was raided by police in New Delhi over an allegation that the restuarant in the house was serving beef in blatant violation of the laws, including the federal rights of a state of the union of India. Although beef (especially cow meat) is banned in most of the states in India, beef is not banned in Kerala, West Bengal and several North Eastern states
On 2nd November, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) threatened to behead Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah if he “dared to eat beef”. Shivamogga district level leader of the BJP SN Channabasappa also said that he would “play with his (severed) head”. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had said that he would eat beef if he wished, and that the BJP did not have the right to question him on it.
Popular Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was asked to go to Pakistan and also alleged him to be a Pakistan agent by several senior leaders of BJP, when he said that there is “growing intolerance” in the country and nobody can question his patriotism.
BJP MP Yogi Adityanath compared him to Pakistani terrorist and 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed, and said he is “welcome” to go to Pakistan. BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya said the actor lives in India but his “soul (aatma)” is in Pakistan .
Jayanta Mahapatra's Letter to The President of India
