Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said that the government ignored Shivakumara Swami, the spiritual leader who passed away Monday, while conferring the Padma awards. Expressing his disappointment, Kharge said that the Lingayat seer spent his life working for orphan children but was still not considered by the government for the Bharat Ratna.
Kharge said the government had seen his works and rather chose to award a singer (Bhupen Hazarika) and a “man who propagated their RSS ideology” (Nanaji Deshmukh).
“Govt had seen his (Shivakumara) work. Even then the BJP govt didn’t give him the award. This is sad. A singer and a man who propagates their RSS ideology have also been awarded. If you compare all of them, then Shivakumara Swami ji should have been given the award,” Kharge was quoted as saying by ANI.
“Bharat Ratna was conferred upon Pranab Mukherjee, I welcome this. But Shivakumara Swami ji worked a lot in the education sector and spent his life working for orphan children and sent them to schools. He should be awarded Bharat Ratna. We had expected this,” he said.
Shivakumar Swami, 111, popularly known as “walking God’’, had been battling age-related complications for a long time. The Lingayat pontiff was undergoing treatment for a lung infection and was on ventilator support. He passed away on January 21. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior BJP leaders had expressed their condolences over the loss.
The Congress leader, however, welcomed the decision to confer the Bharat Ratna on former president Pranab Mukherjee, but said that his party had high hopes for Shivakumara Swami to get the highest civilian award.
Mukherjee was on Friday conferred with the award along with Bharatiya Jana Sangh leader Nanaji Deshmukh and legendary singer-composer Bhupen Hazarika.
