The national chess icon Viswanathan Anand couldn’t lose sleep over denial of an honorary doctorate. He has already put the controversy over his nationality behind him with a simple but cryptic remark: "I don't feel that I am in a country which is trying to genuinely humiliate me."
That should make HRD mandarins hang their heads in shame. He did not intend to bring embarrassment to the government of India, which was why he did not make a big issue of it, but the fact remains that he declined the honour to be given by the International Mathematics Congress (IMC) at the initiative of Hyderabad University only after the HRD ministry raised doubts over his nationality.
This episode raises many questions and also turns the HRD ministry’s move suspicious. The HRD mandarins might be smugly happy at their achievement, but they should also realise the damage they have inflicted upon the prestige and image of the country as the ugly incident took place at the IMC that is being attended by eminent mathematicians from across the globe. Anand holds an Indian passport but lives in Spain. Over the years Anand has been representing India; he has brought many laurels for India and every one acknowledged and praised him as an Indian. Then what made the HRD ministry to come up with this revelation, that too just hours ahead of his being conferred the degree? If the HRD ministry has any objection about his nationality at the first place it should approach the sports ministry not to allow him represent India. Why is there a sudden doubt for the government of India on his citizenship? Moreover where is the defined guideline that an NRI should not be conferred with the honorary doctorate degree?
The HRD Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal has apologised to Anand for the obtrusive action of his ministry but he should realise that his apology is certainly not a soap which would wash the insult that has been inflicted on Anand by his ministry. What has been most insulting has been the crude manner in which the HRD officials behaved in this matter. Instead of directly approaching him and seeking his views or records about his being Indian, they approached the secretary of the IMC Mr Rajat Tandon asking "if the IMC was sure he is an Indian and whether they could provide them with some evidence." What was worse, even after a series of clarifications, including submission of his passport copy, the ministry has kept the file on hold. This is terrible and can happen only in India and nowhere else. On his part, Mr Sibal has shown his keenness to award the honorary degree to Anand at any place and on any date according to his convenience. Indian universities are known for honouring politicians with doctorates.
The conference organisers have slammed the HRD ministry’s ‘insensitive bureaucratic obstructions’ but this is not for the first time the government has been insensitive towards such persons. Only in July this year the famous writer V S Naipaul had to face hard times after he applied for a PIO card. He was asked to prove that he is really an Indian. It is not that he is the only person to ask for this card. More than half a million NRIs have acquired the coveted Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) after government announced dual citizenship. Naipaul’s ancestors belonged to UP’s Gorakhpur. Salman Rushdie though born in Mumbai is yet to be recognised as an Indian. The government must wake up to the ground realities.
