Writer snubs Guj Sahitya Academy

VADODARA: Another Gujarati writer has returned his award to Gujarat Sahitya Academy to support the movement demanding autonomy of the institute.
Writer Bharat Mehta, a professor at M S University's Department of Gujarati, on Tuesday declared that he has returned the award and the money to the Gujarat Sahitya Academy. Mehta had received first prize in literary criticism for his book 'Kalakar no Itihasbodh' published in 2008.Mehta also returned the Rs 11,000 prize money through a cheque.
In a statement, Mehta said that his gesture is to protest against the insulting remarks made against writers who are demanding autonomy for Gujarat Sahitya Academy. They are termed 'Taliban' by the Academy's unconstitutionally appointed president and retired bureaucrat Bhagyesh Jha.
In a letter addressed to Jha, Mehta said that passing insulting remarks against senior writers like Dhiru Parikh and Niranjan Bhagat are not befitting.