Thursday 25 December 2014

Bharat Ratna awards


The media are full of the award of Bharat Ratna to Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya and Atal Behari Vajpayi. Many people have applauded it.

 I regret I cannot join in this adulation. In my opinion neither of them deserved the award.

What was there so great about Vajpayee ? And what was there in Malviya ? It is said that he set up the Benaras Hindu University. But how can a University be Hindu or Muslim ? A University is something universal. In fact setting up Aligarh Muslim University and Benares Hindu University was part of the British policy of divide and rule.

 The persons who in my opinion should be awarded Bharat Ratna are :

(1) Mirza Ghalib
 When I first spoke of this some people said : why not to Gautam Buddha and Ashoka ? My answer is : Ghalib is modern, not ancient or medeival, and he has taken literature to the highest pinnacle. Also, posthumous awards have frequently been given, e.g. to Dr. Ambedkar and Sardar Patel.

(2) Dr. Dwarkanath Kotnis, for his outstanding sacrifice to help the Chinese people when they were fighting the Japanese invaders. This brought laurels to India, showing that we are not a people concerned only about ourselves, but also think of the welfare of other nations

(3) Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyaya, for his powerful attack against the caste system and womens' oppression in his stories and novels

(4) Subramania Bharti, for his nationalism and powerful support for womens' emancipation in his poetry

 (5) P. Sainath, for his courageous journalism, exposing the truth of the social and economic realities in India, e.g. farmers suicides.

  But who cares for my opinion ?

( My article in The Hindu on 29 December, 2011: Who should get the Bharat Ratna? )

9 comments:

  1. With due respect, sir, am amazed with your proposal... U r discarding d persons who have done something 'practically' and 'on ground' rather than just being theoretic about it and writing poems and novels..
    Giving 'gyan' in novels & poems is very easy but to implement, even a simplistic of the things, takes its own efforts and courage.. India has this problem for long... We have everything good in literature, but when it comes to implementation, we are just equal to a BIG ZERO.. And then we step out with the 'elite class' drama of candle march and all...
    Although I disagree with your observation that University cant be Hindu or Muslim, but disagree with the fact that none of these two deserved the Bharat Ratna.. Each to his own views..

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  2. sir with respect....pls try to know the ground level reality.........bhu not only gives education to bihar and up students but also giving a good medical facility to the poor people of bihar .......sir there was no aiims or central university before 2010 in bihar......so for every bihari middle class students bhu is heaven............lastly.i am not saying malvia jee deserves for bharat ratna or not ......but .....when u started making the list of persons posthoumously for bharat ratna .....u find malvia jee is in top 5....jai hind !

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  3. Katju sir, all 5 may deserve but ABV and MMM also deserve

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  4. I too applauded this Government decision.But now Thanks! for opening my eyes with your knowledge. Also good comparison about BHU and AMU and it's history. Now I agree that Government decision is biased.

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  5. Sure opinions vary. But I understand and endorse your view because it is dispassionate.
    Remember the film actor from Andhra, NTR too was awarded the BR.

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  6. कल 28/दिसंबर/2014 को आपकी पोस्ट का लिंक होगा http://nayi-purani-halchal.blogspot.in पर
    धन्यवाद !

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  7. Why not to Justice H R Khanna , who gave dissenting judgment in ADM Jabalpur case?

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  8. You have lost it.. Please go & search for your missing brain..

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