By IANS
New Delhi/Lucknow/Kolkata : The unprecedented controversy over the highest civilian honour in India, Bharat Ratna, deepened further Saturday with another big name entering the fray.
While the central government is yet to decide on the recipient of the award, announced Jan 26 every year, more political parties joined the fray. The names of four political veterans were doing the rounds Saturday – former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, veteran communist leader Jyoti Basu, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and the late Kanshi Ram of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
Kanshi Ram’s name was the one that entered the Bharat Ratna race Saturday.
Senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) L.K. Advani had set the ball rolling by writing to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding that Vajpayee be given the award. General secretary of the Congress Veerappa Moily later said the honour should be conferred on Basu.
In the midst of the Left-Right war, Karunanidhi’s candidature was also making the rounds. His party the DMK, which is an ally of the Congress-led UPA government, renewed its demand that was also made last year.
On Saturday afternoon, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati put forward the name of the late Kanshi Ram.
In a letter sent to the prime minister, Mayawati drew his attention to Kanshi Ram’s contribution in creating an awakening among Dalits and other marginalized sections of society.
“Kanshi Ram also did a yeoman service in breaking the barriers between different lower castes so that these could unite themselves into a meaningful political force and assert their rights,” she wrote.
As for Basu, the CPI-M does not want to hazard an opinion, lest it be seen compromising on its official stand against party leaders receiving awards.
“I don’t know about the parameters on the basis of which Bharat Ratna is conferred on an individual. But if Basu fulfils the parameters, the union government can think over it,” Left Front chairman Biman Bose said.
Senior CPI-M leader Shymal Chakraborty played safer. “We have not even discussed it. It is based on a broad consensus (in the party),” he told IANS Saturday.
CPI-M central committee member Benoy Konar said: “We shall not object in principle if Bharat Ratna is conferred on Jyoti Basu. But the party will not recommend his name to the central government as the BJP is shamelessly doing for Vajpayee.”
On the other hand the Communist Party of India (CPI), a member of the Left front, did have an objection in principle.
CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan said the Left parties were not in favour of accepting state awards.
“Left parties are anti-establishment. We are fighting the state for a socialist society. So, we are against any state awards,” Bardhan said.
Anyway, the honour should be given only in exceptional cases, Bardhan said.
Other Left sources also said that the CPI-M was not keen on Bharat Ratna for Basu.
Going back to the demand made by Advani, Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi criticised the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha and said Bharat Ratna could not be “demanded”.
Manmohan Singh had sidestepped the controversy Friday. “It is too early to decide on who will get the awards,” he had told reporters.
The highest civilian award in India was last conferred on shehnai maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan and Lata Mangeshkar in 2001. Nobody has been given the award since then.
So far 40 people, including Nelson Mandela – have been conferred the honour. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, C.V. Raman and C. Rajagopalachari were the recipients in the inaugural year 1954.