BJP MP Chandan Mitra on Friday expressed regret for saying the Bharat Ratna should be taken back from Amartya Sen, but criticised Sen’s economic philosophy as “outdated” and advised him to shun politics.
“I think I may have exaggerated. I do regret the part about taking away of the Bharat Ratna from Dr Sen. I oversaid it,” Mitra told reporters. He reiterated that his tweet reflected his personal view and not the BJP’s line.
However, the BJP MP advised, “If Dr Sen is watching me, I would like to tell him that he should not engage in politics. Dr Amartya Sen should behave like a Bharat Ratna does.” He also rem ained highly critical of Sen’s economics, describing them as “outdated and one that needs to be discarded,” and adding, “I have studied Economics.”
Mitra accused Sen of harbouring political bias. “Dr Sen is a leftist, but he has been supporting the Congress’ policies. It’s unfair the way he spoke about the BJP. A person of his stature should not make such comments,” he said.
When it came to Sen’s comments on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, which had been the beginning of the entire debate, the MP noted, “On his point about Modi not being the preferred PM, Dr Sen is not a voter in India.”
In Mumbai, the Shiv Sena did not agree with the demand for stripping Sen of the Bharat Ratna over his comments on Modi, noting, “Sen is an economist of international repute and such demands shouldn’t be made by his detractors.” However, it advised the economist “not to poke his nose” into politics.
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamna, “The economy of the country is in a bad state. Prices are soaring and poverty is on the rise. It is not Modi who has done this and despite being a Nobel laureate, Amartya Sen has no medicine for this.”
Meanwhile, notwithstanding the regret expressed by Mitra, Congress spokesperson Renuka Chowdhury said the Nobel laureate has the right to express his views as a citizen of India. “Asking for his Bharat Ratna to be returned is condemnable... How shameful it is that the discourse has plunged to such low levels where dignity, respect and more importantly, self-respect are not applied,” she said at a Press conference.