My novel is a satire on the Congress govt of 1980s: Ramachandrappa

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru

 Well-known Kannada writer Baraguru Ramachandrappa expressed his disappointment with the complaint filed by BJP leaders against him for allegedly insulting the national anthem. BJP MLC N Ravikumar and Chalawadi Narayanaswamy had filed a case against the author accusing him of mocking the national anthem in his novel Bharatnagari, which was published nearly four decades ago.

 “We have filed a complaint to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner Pratap Reddy. He has assured us that action would be taken against Ramachandrappa. In his novel not only has he made fun of the national anthem, but also mocked leaders like Morarji Desai and Atal Bihari Vajpayee,” said Ravikumar.

“The work shows India in a bad light. It is humiliating for the nation. Anything like this will not be tolerated against the national flag and anthem. We want immediate legal action and ban on the novel,” he added.

 In response, Ramachandrappa has issued a clarification saying, “The novel was published in 1983 and was a satirical take on the Congress government in the 80s. The content of the novel was not to hurt national sentiments. It was just a political satire against the establishment.

 I don’t understand why my work which was published 40 years ago is being talked about now.” The writer also added that the protagonist of the poem, ‘Janaganamana’ is a character that stands against injustice.

The BJP leader has also accused Ramachandrappa of insulting Ganga in his poem. Rebutting the charge, the writer said, “I was not insulting Ganga. But it was just used as a character to show that the then government (Congress) was polluting Ganga, which stands for truth.”

 However, Ravikumar said that action should be taken against Ramachandrappa. The law department, Kannada Sahitya Parishath and culture department will be asked to look into the matter, he added