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From Puducherry, in defence of a poem

Divya Ramamurthi

CHENNAI: Puducherry Chief Minister N. Rangasamy has sought to set at rest the controversy over the poem, "Tagore on Pondicherry," that appeared in a government publication.

In a letter to Mr. Rangaswamy on October 17, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee condemned the poem — an adaptation of Tagore's Gitanjali — as a "distortion and misrepresentation" of the Nobel laureate's work. He sought the "withdrawal" of the publication and strict action against those responsible.

In his response, Mr. Rangasamy on Thursday said the poem, which appeared in the publication Glimpse of Pondicherry," brought out by the Department of Art and Culture on the occasion of the "Festival of Pondicherry in France," was not meant to belittle, distort or denigrate the heritage or work of Rabindranath Tagore. "The very purpose of bringing out this book was to win goodwill for the people and the territory of Puducherry."

The poem, penned by Secretary of Art and Culture B.V. Selvaraj, was an attempt to pay a tribute to the Nobel laureate. "According to the author, the very caption, `Tagore on Pondicherry,' has been consciously chosen to accord due respect and pay rich tributes to the Nobel laureate and national poet of our country."

The poem, "Tagore on Pondicherry," was extracted from Mr. Selvaraj's earlier book of poems Puducheria, published in 1997, in which he had acknowledged Tagore as his "source of inspiration."

Mr. Rangasamy offered to delete the poem if the West Bengal Chief Minister was "unconvinced" by the author's explanation and his own views.

Mr. Selvaraj said the controversy was the result of a misunderstanding of his love for Rabindranath Tagore's work.

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