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The Union Ministry of Culture on Sunday awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021 to Gita Press – the world’s largest publisher of Hindu religious texts, stirring controversy.
The big point: A jury headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi selected Gita Press, Gorakhpur, for the peace prize after deliberations on Sunday, ‘in recognition of its outstanding contribution towards social, economic and political transformation through non-violent and other Gandhian methods,’ the government said in a statement.
The details: While announcing the award, PM Modi recalled the contribution of Gita Press in promoting the Gandhian ideals of peace and social harmony, as per a press release. He observed that the conferment of Gandhi Peace Prize on Gita Press, on completion of hundred years of its establishment, is a recognition of the work done by the institution in community service.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is elected from Gorakhpur Sadar, tweeted, “Heartfelt congratulations to Gita Press located in Gorakhpur, the most important centre of religious literature of ‘Sanatan Dharma of India’, on receiving the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021.”
The backlash: Reacting strongly to the decision to award the Hindu religious texts press, the Congress called it “a travesty” and asserted that “it is like awarding Savarkar and Godse.”
“There is a very fine biography from 2015 of this organisation by Akshaya Mukul in which he unearths the stormy relations it had with the Mahatma and the running battles it carried on with him on his political, religious & social agenda,” Jairam Ramesh, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, further noted.
Zoom in: The primary objective of the Gita Press “is to promote and spread the principles of Sanatana Dharma, the Hindu religion among the general public by publishing Gita, Ramayana, Upanishads, Puranas, Discourses of eminent Saints and other character-building books & magazines and marketing them at highly subsidised prices,” as per the publisher’s official website.
FYI: Instituted by the central government in 1995, the Gandhi Peace Prize pays tribute to the ideals espoused by Mahatma Gandhi. The award includes a cash prize of Rs 1 crore, a citation, a plaque, and a traditional handicraft or handloom item. The past awardees include organisations and individuals such as ISRO, Ramakrishna Mission, and Nelson Mandela.
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