Sahitya Akademi awardee KP Ramanunni gives away prize money to lynch victim kin

The Sahitya Akademi Awards 2017 were given away to writers from 23 languages in New Delhi recently.

However, as a mark of protest against the murder of Haryana teenager Junaid Khan, who was killed in a train last June while returning home after Eid shopping, Malayalam writer K.P.Ramanunni gave away the award to his mother after taking Rs 3 from the total prize money of Rs 1 lakh.

Ramanunni said that the book for which he won the award is about communal harmony and said that Junaid was killed for no reason. The family of Tamil poet Inquilab, awarded posthumously, who had earlier announced their refusal to accept the award, also didn't attend the award ceremony.

Jayanta Madhab Bora won the award in Assamese for his book Moriahola, Afsar Ahmed won the award in Bengali for his Sei Nikhonj Manushta and Rita Baro won the award in Bodo for Thwisam. The award in Dogri went to Shiv Mehta for Banna, in English to Mamang Dai for her book The Black Hill, and in Gujarati to Urmi Ghanshyam Desai for her Gujarati Vyakarana na Baso Varsha. The award in Hindi went to Ramesh Kuntal Megh for Vishw Mithak, Sarit Sagar, in Kannada to T.P. Ashoka for Kathana Bharathi, in Kashmiri to Autar Krishen Rahbar for his Yeli Parda Woth, and in Konkani to Gajanan Raghunath Jog for Khand Ani Her Katha. In Maithili, Udaya Narayan Singh 'Nachiketa' won for Jahalak Diary, Ramanunni in Malayalam for Daivathinte Pustakam, Rajen Toijamba in Manipuri for his Chahee Taret Khuntakpa, in Marathi to Shrikant Deshmukh for Bolave Te Amhi, and in Nepali to Bina Hangkhim for her book Kriti Vimarsh.

The award in Odia went to Gayatri Saraf for Etavatira Shilpi, in Punjabi to Nachhatar for Slow Down, in Rajasthani to Neeraj Daiya for Bina Hasalpai, in Sanskrit to Niranjan Mishra for his Gangaputravadanam, in Santhali to Bhujanga Tudu for his book Tahenan Tangi Re, and in Sindhi to Jagdish Lachhani for his Aachhende Laja Maraan.

T.Devipriya bagged the award in Telugu for Gaalirangu and the award in Urdu went to Mohammed Baig Ehsas for his book Dakhma.

Sahitya Akademi President Chandrashekhar Kambar presented the winners with a citation, a shawl and a cheque of Rs 1 lakh.

(With inputs from IANS)

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