Puducherry CM Makes Amends After Walking Out Of Odia Writer Manoj Das’ Felicitation Event

Amid demand for apology over the row kicked off at the felicitation ceremony of Odia writer Manoj Das, who has won the Padma Bhushan, in Puducherry during Republic Day ‘At Home’ function, Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy visited the litterateur at him place on Tuesday. 

“The CM walked out of the function over some issues with the Lieutenant Governor, but today he came to my house and felicitated me,” said Das.

The CM along with education minister R Kamalakannan and parliamentary secretary Lakshminarayanan visited his residence and presented him a shawl and a bouquet.

Narayanasamy had left the reception hosted by Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi in a huff on January 26. He was invited to honour the two awardees from Puducherry – Das and V K Munussamy, who has been conferred with Padma Shri.

What irked the CM was that the event to honour the awardees was organised without his knowledge, media reports said.

The L-G later felicitated Das and Munussamy.

While Bedi on Monday demanded an apology from the CM for ‘disrespecting the sanctity of a national event’, the CM issued a clarification stating that the L-G had insulted the elected government by organising a programme without the informing it.