This move was taken by writers after Bangalore Literature Festival director Vikram Sampat in an article criticised the returning of awards in the wake of “growing intolerance” in the country.
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The intolerance row has now cast a shadow on the upcoming Bangalore Literature Festival with three noted Kannada writers deciding to boycott the fest which is scheduled for December 5 and 6. “In the interest of the organization that I founded and nurtured, which is now being linked to my personal views and targeted, I have taken the painful decision of stepping away from all responsibility of organizing the Festival”. Sampat termed the writers as “sheep”. He adds that since the protesting writers seemed to have a problem with his involvement and not the nature of the festival, he is hopeful that his withdrawal will now make them more comfortable with participating. “Second was my stance on the recent Tipu Sultan controversy and a subsequent petition signed by me, along with a group of very eminent historians, archaeologists, epigraphists and artists, on the need for recognising multiple viewpoints and narratives in Indian historiography”.
The festival and the its ideals are greater than any individual and it would be a shame if differing views went unheard, the statement, issued on Saturday, said.
According to the sources, Kannada writers O L Nagabhushana Swamy, Arif Raza and Dayananda T K have declared their decision to quit the BLF.
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The Times Of India reports that OL Nagabhushana Swamy has also backed out from the festival as he did not want to be a part of an event whose organisers “are not willing to even pause and examine the anguish of writers”. He described the situation as being “selective outrage”, as writers had been silent about previous atrocities such as books being banned and attacks on authors. Dayanand TK, said in his letter that he had misgivings about some of the sponsors of the festival.
