India: Writers Step Up Protest, 6 More Return Sahitya Akademi Awards

Gujarat-based writer Ganesh Devy, ‘Yuva Puraskar’-winning author Aman Sethi and four other eminent writers from Punjab returned their Sahitya Akademi awards on Sunday. Kannada writer Aravind Malagatti resigned from the body’s general council, joining the growing protest by writers over “rising intolerance” and “communal” atmosphere.

The 1983-born Aman Sethi’s ‘A Free Man’, a book of narrative reportage, had bagged the Akademi’s award for young writers under the age of 35 in 2012. The Mumbai-based writer said that he is returning his award as he was “shocked” at the literary body’s refusal to take “a firm stance” on the killing of rationalist writer MM Kalburgi.