Hampa Nagarajaiah resigns as Kuvempu Pratishthana president

Senior scholar Hampa Nagarajaiah on Monday tendered resignation as chairperson of the Kuvempu Pratishthana to protest the government’s “indifference” in acting against textbook review committee chief Rohith Chakratirtha.

Nagarajaiah, popularly known as Hampana, is the first member of a government-run academy to resign amid a growing clamour for action against Chakrathirtha for allegedly insulting Kuvempu and the nada geete (state anthem) he penned.

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In his resignation letter sent to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Hampana condemned the government’s move to have a person who has no regard for Kuvempu and his work as the chairperson of the textbook revision committee. This sends a wrong message, Hampana said.

Over the past week, various social, literary and religious leaders have raised their voice against the Chakratirtha even as the government’s plans to tweak the contents of school textbooks has stoked a controversy.