Writer Gita Mehta Declines Padma Awards, Says Timing Not Right

Bhubaneswar: Renowned writer Gita Mehta on Saturday refused to accept the Padmi Shri, which the Centre announced on the eve of Republic Day.

In a press statement issued from New York, Mehta said, “I am deeply honoured that the Government of India should think me worthy of a Padma Shri but with great regret I feel I must decline as there is a general election looming and the timing of the award might be misconstrued, causing embarrassment both to the Government and myself, which I would much regret.”

Mehta was selected for the coveted civilian honour in the literature and education category.

While the Ministry of Home Affairs, in its press note, categorised her as a ‘foreigner’, sources said she is an Indian citizen and holds an Indian passport.

The elder sister of Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Mehta has authored books like Karma Cola (1979), Raj (1989), A River Sutra (1993), Snakes and Ladders: Glimpses of Modern India (1997) and Eternal Ganesha: From Birth to Rebirth (2006). She has also produced and/or directed 14 documentaries.

Seventy-six-year-old Mehta, who is one of the three children (Prem, Gita and Naveen) of Odisha’s former CM Biju Patnaik and Gyan Patnaik, is married to Sonny Mehta, chief of publishing house Alfred A. Knopf.

On Friday evening, the Centre had announced her name along with the list of Padma awardees following approval by President Ram Nath Kovind.