Kendra Sahitya Akademi President Madhav Koushik has said that Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal inaugurated Akademi’s Sahityolsav in his capacity as a writer. The statement was the rejoinder to famous Malayalam writer C Radhakrishnan’s statement that he was resigning as the ‘Distinguished Member’ of the Akademi in protest against the presence of a politician in the Akademi programme. President said that Arjun Ram Meghwal was a reputed writer in Rajasthani and Hindi language. Ek Safar Ham Safar Ke Sath, Divya Path Dampathya Ka are his much-talked works.
Madhav Koushik made it a point that this is not the first time a Minister inaugurated the Sahityolsav. C Radhakrishnan himself has countered his own argument by admitting that Pt Jawaharlal Nehru himself had inaugurated the Ulsav once. The argument is that it was in Nehru’s capacity as a writer. Then, naturally, the question arises if Arjun Ram Meghwal is not a writer.
C Radhakrishnan has alleged that the Minister’s presence is detrimental to the independence of the Akademi hence he resigns from the Distinguished Membership of the Akademi.
Observers point out that the first president of the Akademi was none other than Pt Jawaharlal Nehru. It was clarified at that point of time that Nehru was selected as the president and invited to inaugurate the Akademi on May 12, 1954, as he was a writer. The august assembly was presided by the then Education Minister Moulana Abdul Kalam Azad. Knowledgeable sources inform that Nurul Hassan and Arjun Singh had addressed the Akademi programmes several times (during Congress regime) when they were union ministers.
Here, a few significant questions arise: Did Pt. Nehru cease to be the Prime Minister when he inaugurated the Akademi ? What is Arjun Singh’s contribution to literature (apart from political memoirs)? And Nurul Hassan’s works are on history, religion, etc. Therefore, impartial people wonder if the ‘rule book’ is of universal application or selective application.
And Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal inaugurated UNMESH, the International Literature Festival, organised by the Akademi, last year at Shimla.
C Radhakrishnan is a reputed writer with several best-seller novels and several science-related works to his credit. He has bagged numerous awards including Kerala’s prestigious Ezhuthachan Puraskar and Bharatiya Gnanpit’s Moorthidevi Award. He was a scientist under the Government of Bharat. He has also contributed to the realm of journalism as the editor of Veekshanam Malayalam Daily, the mouthpiece of Congress in Kerala, and also as the Design & Packaging Consultant of Madhyamam Publications of Jamath-e-Islami which publishes Madhyamam Malayalam Daily.
