English fiction writer Nayantara Sahgal has today decided to return her Sahitya Akademi Award in protest of increasing intolerance towards dissent in this country. She reportedly is also furious over Narendra Modi’s silence on recent incidents including #DadriLynching .
Nayantara Sahgal was one of the first female English writers from India to gain some substantial recognition.
She was awarded “Shahitya Academy” for her novel titled ‘Rich Like Us’ published in the year 1985.
The award was given to her in 1986 just two years after 1984 riots in which hundreds and thousands of Sikhs were brutally killed. When she accepted this national recognition in form of ‘Shahitya Academy Award’ given by India’s National Academy of Letters, Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister of India.
Rajiv Gandhi was sworn in as Prime Minister after his mother’s death and when asked about the 1984 riots he had infamously said “when a big tree falls, the earth shakes”.
Recently, Rajiv Gandhi’s son Rahul irked the Sikhs once again by saying, “Some Congressmen were probably involved in the anti-Sikh violence of 1984.”
Whether the prestigious award in 1986 was accepted by her as a display of dissent is a question still mysterious.
Nayantara Sahgal also happens to be the niece of first prime minister of India Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru. She was the second daughter of JL Nehru’s sister Vijya Lakshmi Pandit who also happens to be the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post.
After spending a larger part of her initial childhood in Allahabads’ Anand Bhawan she has openly endorsed Nehru’s legacy as India’s legacy and it looks natural for someone like her who was born and brought-up in a family accustomed of ruling the country year after year to now show their loyalty and do their bit in saving the family at these exceptionally hard times!
Critical analogies and constructive opposition are the signs of a healthy democracy. Everyone has a right to agree or disagree in a democracy and a writer will always have the power of pen to express his thoughts.
While returning or accepting ‘Sahitya Academy’ remains Nayantara Sahgal ’s personal opinion, there will be scathing question about her intentions, choice of medium and timings.
In her statement today she has said that, “India’s culture of diversity and debate is now under vicious assault”. It won’t be wrong to ask her about why wasn’t India’s diversity under attack when Kashmiri Pandit’s were pushed out of Kashmir in 1990?
Her father himself happens to be a Kashmiri Pandit and it would have been appreciable if the plights of KP’s during that mass ethnic cleansing of valley would have also evoked such expression of dissent from her.
While she returns ‘Sahitya Academy Award’ against delay in the probe of Kalburgi’s and Govind Pansare’s murder why not also raise the voice for justice to 1984 victims?
Or was this award a fig leaf to maintain some selective situational silence?
Nevertheless Navantara Shagal ji while you are at it, I hope you won’t be intolerant towards my dissent with your thought and intentions!