Renowned Hindi poet turns down Padma Shri

Poet turns down prize

Renowned Hindi poet Acharya Janki Ballabh Shastri has turned down the Padma Shri awarded by the government, saying he was chosen for it decades after junior poets were conferred the honour.

Janki Ballabh Shastri, in his late 80s, is unhappy over being given the award late in life. "What does it [Padma Shri] mean now, it is nothing but an insult and abuse for me. It is certainly not an honour at this stage of my life," Shastri told a local Hindi news channel and Hindi daily yesterday.

Shastri, who lives in Bihar's Muzaffarpur town, was named for the Padma Shri on Monday for his significant contribution to Hindi literature.

He said he was behind his students getting "bigger honours" than the Padma Shri. "It was I who was behind the Padma Shri to Dinkar and Rambriksh Benipuri," he said, referring to Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, popularly known as Rashtra Kavi (National poet), and Benipuri, well-known Hindi poets.

Shastri is a renowned Hindi poet, writer and critic. He has earlier been honoured with awards like Rajendra Shikhar Samman, Bharat Bharti Award and Shivpujan Sahay Award.