`I feel like a prisoner in Raj Bhavan'

May 27, 2011,

BANGALORE: Governor H R Bhardwaj has a penchant for sharp and witty remarks. On Thursday, at a programme on Kuvempu in Raj Bhavan, he seemed to be rather introspective, saying he "sometimes felt a prisoner in Raj Bhavan". 

Does this statement have something to do with the Centre rejecting his proposal for President's rule in Karnataka in a message that his actions were not appropriate? 

Bhardwaj spoke candidly to a group of Kannada intellectuals who'd been invited to Raj Bhavan by the Samudra Foundation to discuss the thoughts and vision of great Kannada poet Kuvempu in whose works the governor has a deep interest. 

Hailing Kuvempu's vision as broad-minded, liberal and embracing all of humanity, and in an oblique reference to current political events in the state, Bhardwaj said: "In these days of petty thinking, it's very important we understand what Kuvempu stands for. We need to imbibe his vision of life and society." 

He said: "Sometimes I feel we're like prisoners in Raj Bhavan. We can't go out of certain borders though we need to. We have to break out." 

The governor went on: "How can there be any place for petty thinking when Karnataka has a galaxy of eminent intellectuals? Please make use of Raj Bhavan. I occupy only one room, the rest is yours. Raj Bhavan is your place. In these turbulent times, it is my good fortune that I have good cultural advisers. And Kuvempu always gives me the right direction." 

Bhardwaj asserted he's not a politician. "By my sixth sense, I'm a lawyer. I'm not a politician, nor a philosopher. It's by chance I went to Parliament for 28 years. If I want to promote anybody, it'll only be Kuvempu." 

Hinting at how he had acted independently without bowing to pressure from any quarter in the state government, the governor said he had appointed vice-chancellors to Mangalore and Gulbarga universities keeping broader social interests in view rather than a mere committee recommendation. "I felt there was a need to protect and give space to the Dalit and Banjara communities in Mangalore and Gulbarga. That's why I appointed a Dalit and Banjara VC to the universities." 

The governor was addressing an august audience which included G Venkatasubbiah, Girish Kasaravalli, Hampa Nagarajaiah, Manu Chakravarthy, Mallepuram Venkatesh, Dr Chidananda Gowda, Ms Tharini (daughter of Kuvempu), K E Radhakrishna, among others. Some made presentations on Kuvempu, his views on society, language, philosophy, aesthetics, his love for nature, universal vision, concept of humanity and his vast body of poetry. 

`Poet extraordinaire' 

Kuvempu and Rabindranath Tagore are the greatest poets of India. But I'd like the rest of India to know Kuvempu more. We cannot confine Kuvempu to only Karnataka. I want a first-rate book on Kuvempu translated into English and made available in every corner of the country. I'd be glad to finance the project. 

I love Kuvempu for his vision of a caste-free and creed-free society. He was a universalist. He considered himself the son of Prithvi -- son of the world and the entire humanity as his world. When we have Kuvempu, why worry about dividing sects and philosophies? Kuvempu is like Gandhi, he unites everybody. I have read Tulsidas, Sur Das, Raz Khan and a lot of Bhakti literature. I never knew there was so much this side of the country. It was a revelation to know about Kuvempu and everything he said.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/I-feel-like-a-prisoner-in-Raj-Bhavan/articleshow/8592666.cms