A parallel literary conference was held in Bengaluru on January 8, 2023, in response to the alleged exclusion of Muslim writers from the Kannada Sahitya Sammelana organised by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat, a non-profit organisation, funded by the Karnataka government.
Activists and writers in Karnataka expressed their disappointment at the lack of diversity at the Kannada Sahitya Sammelana, leading a group of them to organise a more inclusive event, the ‘Jana Sahitya Sammelana’. Banu Mushtaq and Dr. Mudnakudu Chinnaswamy were the chief guests at the Jana Sahitya Sammelana.
Dalit writer and Sahitya Akademi award winner Mudnakudu Chinnaswamy highlighted the threat of the imposition of Hindi on classical languages such as Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Odia. He also spoke about the attempts to erase Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy, and the exclusion of Muslims from every sphere of public life. “The exclusion of Muslim writers from the literary fest in Haveri was part of a wider agenda of pushing out Muslims from the mainstream,” he said.
Purushottama Bilimale, a prominent Kannada scholar, criticised Kannada writers and representative organisations for their lack of action in addressing the various crises facing the Kannada language and the state of Karnataka. Bilimale specifically mentioned the attacks on syncretic culture as a crisis that needs attention. He pointed out the lack of proper platforms for discussing these issues and expressed disappointment towards the Kannada Sahitya Sammelana for not addressing them. He suggests the organization of conventions like the Janasahitya Sammelana in various regions of the state of Karnataka to help address these issues.
The conference featured poetry, speeches, and panel discussions that focused on resistance and inclusion.
The Jana Sahitya Sammelana was put together by members of various organisations such as Samudaya, Democratic Youth Federation of India, AIDWA, Dalita Sangharsha Samiti, Ondede, Journalist Study Centre, and many others. Actors and activists like Prakash Raj and Dr. Akkai Padmashali were also present as guests and speakers at the conference. The conference was held at the Alumni Hall of the University of Visvesvaraya College of Engineering.
