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Kandhamal clashes: ‘Ajna’ suffers shock

BERHAMPUR: Communal clashes at Baliguda and other places proved to be a major shock for 89-year-old veteran Gandhian Biswanath Patnaik of Baliguda, popularly known as ‘Koraput’s Gandhi’or ‘Ajna’.

The emotional pain he received from communal violence that hit Baliguda since Dec. 24 had a major toll on his health.

This led to a severe asthmatic stroke. This living embodiment of Gandhian ideologies used to live at the ashram of the ‘Vanavasi Seva Samity’ established by him at Baliguda.

He was shifted to the ICU in SCB Medical College, Cuttack on Monday, only when curfew was relaxed for a few hours at Baliguda.

He was admitted to the ICU till Tuesday evening. According to doctors his condition has improved.. But even in the ICU his only concern was whether peace had returned back to Kandhamal district and Baliguda or not. Assistant secretary of ‘Vanavasi Seva Samity’, Rabindra Panda, who accompanied the veteran Gandhian in the hospital, described the mental pain of the great man to The Hindu over phone. “He was immensely hurt by the erosion of communal harmony for which he had struggled of the last 60 years in the area,” Mr Panda said.

Although his health did not permit him yet Mr Patnaik pressed upon his followers at his ashram at Baliguda to take out peace march and ‘Anasan’ for peace in the town after the violent communal acts by vandals on Dec 24 and 25. He even called up the other four branches of his ashram in Kandhamal district to plan peace marches.

But the doctor treating him and the other members of the ashram did not allow this frail old man to dare the violent mob.

“When we did not allow him to go out saying it was curfew outside, he sobbed saying Gandhiji never wanted peace to be imposed by force,” Mr Panda said. According to him ‘Ajna’ is now trying to get discharged from the hospital as early as possible so that he could take part in the restoration of communal harmony in Kandhamal district.

This man has become a living legend as Jnanapith Award winner and novelist Gopinath Mohanty had based his novel ‘Matimatal’ on his life.

His biography has won Sahitya Akademi award. After independence he had preferred to devote his life to the development of tribals and dalits in south Orissa, living with them wearing a dhoti with a lathi in hand like Mahatma Gandhi. Drastic degradation of the principles that he stood for throughout his life had become a fatal blow for this great persona.

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