WATEGAON (Maharashtra): Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao on Tuesday demanded that the Union government confer the Bharat Ratna on Marathi poet and writer Annabhau Sathe.
Addressing a public meeting at Wategaon in Maharashtra to mark Sathe's 103rd birth anniversary, Chandrashekar Rao said successive Central governments failed to honour the noted Matang Dalit poet, “who is the pride of the country.”
Chandrashekar Rao began his one-day visit to Maharashtra by offering prayers at the Mahalakshmi Mata Ambabai temple in Kolhapur and then visiting Wategoan to address a meeting.
He said Russia had recognised Sathe by referring to him as ‘India’s Maxim Gorky’ and installed his statue in a Russian library. “It is regrettable that successive governments in India did not recognise Sathe and also did not take any steps to introduce his literature to the world,” he said.
The Telangana Chief Minister said the Maharashtra and Union governments should not only recognise Sathe's contributions and sacrifices but also translate all his works into other Indian languages. “On this occasion, my request to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his Cabinet is to honour Sathe, which would translate to respecting ourselves and respecting our country,” Rao said.
At the Wategaon meeting, Chandrashekar Rao said, “As a communist and an Ambedkarite, Sathe continuously worked for the establishment of an egalitarian society.”
After seeking the Bharat Ratna for Sathe, the Chief Minister said that the Maharashtra government was not supporting the Matang community adequately.
He said, “The BRS will fully support the Matang community and will provide all kinds of recognition and assistance when the time comes.”
On the day, Rao also visited the house of Shetkari Sanghatana president Raghunath Dada Patil, who joined the BRS in the Chief Minister’s presence, and announced that a large public meeting will be held soon to induct more leaders into the BRS.
Chandrashekar Rao also visited the memorial of Sahu Maharaj, a popular Bahujan social philosopher and a strong supporter of oppressed communities, and later met with Prakash Singh Jadav, who heads a popular Marathi daily in Kolhapur.
