Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Sunday that politicians should not interfere in fields other than own and let people in the fields like literature and education deal with their specialised tasks.
Known for speaking his mind, Gadkari made a telling comment to this effect at the concluding session of an All India Marathi Literary conclave held at Yavatmal in eastern Maharashtra, which was marred by a major controversy over the revocation of the invitation extended to English litterateur Nayantara Sahgal for the inauguration of the meet.
The controversy saw Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal (ABMSM) President Shripad Joshi resign from his post in protest, two days ahead of the conclave.
Appreciating the organisers’ decision to invite Vaishali Yede, widow of a distressed farmer who committed suicide, in place of Sahgal in the wake of controversy of invitation to the celebrated writer, Gadkari spoke on the freedom of expression enjoyed by the writers and handed out a piece of advice to fellow politicians.
“Politicians should not interfere in the fields other than their own. They should let people in the fields of literature, universities and educational institutions to do their job... There could not have been a better decision than to invite Vaishali Yede who may not have written anything but has seen so much in life,” the Union Minister said.
Gadkari lamented that politics had become power play and not a state craft or a means to bring about economical transformation or changes in society.
“Politics has today become a means enjoy and go after power. Politicians should realise politics is not running after power but bring about economic transformation and changes in the society. The politicians should know their limits and they should not meddle in fields other than own,” the BJP leader said.
“During the emergency, the speeches by noted Marathi writers like P L Deshpande and Durga Bhagwat drew more crowds than politicians. But, after the emergency they went back to the field of literature and never approached any political party for positions for power like Rajya Sabha membership,” Gadkari said, alluding to the respect enjoyed by the writers in the society.
Gadkari’s comment should be seen in the context of the decision taken on January 6 by the 92nd Akhil Bharatiya Maratahi Sahitya Sammelan to revoke the invitation to English litterateur Nayantara Sahgal to inaugurate the conclave on the ostensible ground that it had received threats that there would be disruptions in the proceedings if she attended the three-day conference that was scheduled to begin on January 11.