Honour to receive Bharat Ratna: Bhupen Hazarika’s son

  • | Saturday | 16th February, 2019

GUWAHATI: Tej Hazarika , the New York-based son of Assam music legend Bhupen Hazarika , in a statement on Friday said it would be a “tremendous honour” for him to receive the Bharat Ratna on behalf of his late father. It is a tremendous honor, for me and my family to be invited by the GOI to accept the Bharat Ratna on behalf of my late father. It will be my dreamlike privilege to receive it for my father and his fans and followers everywhere. Only just popular laws and foresight on the part of leadership will.”Tej in his earlier post clearly mentioned that the Indian government had, till then, not extended an invitation to him to receive the Bharat Ratna and so the question of him not accepting the honour does not arise. He sacrificed much and devoted selflessly to the cause of a united and progressive India and now he is being recognized for that with this well-deserved award.

GUWAHATI: Tej Hazarika , the New York-based son of Assam music legend Bhupen Hazarika , in a statement on Friday said it would be a “tremendous honour” for him to receive the Bharat Ratna on behalf of his late father. He also added that his public statement made on February 11, in which he had said the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill “far outweighs” the country’s highest civilian award, has been misinterpreted by certain quarters.In a Facebook post that was accompanied by a signed copy of his father’s photograph, Tej (67) wrote on Friday, “The Government of India has graciously extended me an invitation to accept the Bharat Ratna for my father. He sacrificed much and devoted selflessly to the cause of a united and progressive India and now he is being recognized for that with this well-deserved award. It is a tremendous honor, for me and my family to be invited by the GOI to accept the Bharat Ratna on behalf of my late father. It will be my dreamlike privilege to receive it for my father and his fans and followers everywhere. As always, I will strive to follow in my father’s footsteps to work to bring light where there is darkness.”In an earlier post on February 11, which caused much political upheaval, Tej had written, “I believe that my father’s name and words are being invoked and celebrated publicly while plans are afoot to pass a painfully unpopular bill regarding citizenship that is actually undermining his documented position. It would in reality be in direct opposition to what Bhupenda believed in his heart of hearts ... Bharat Ratnas and longest bridges while necessary, will not promote the peace and prosperity of the citizens of India. Only just popular laws and foresight on the part of leadership will.”Tej in his earlier post clearly mentioned that the Indian government had, till then, not extended an invitation to him to receive the Bharat Ratna and so the question of him not accepting the honour does not arise. “I have not received any invitation so far, (so) there is nothing to reject, and how the Centre moves on this matter (bill) far outweighs in importance (than) the awarding and receiving of such national recognition—a display of short-lived cheap thrills,” he had written back then.However, a section of the media, while interpreting the statement, said Tej had decided to reject the award. Issuing a clarification in that regard, Tej, in his Facebook post on Friday, wrote, “It is unfortunate that (some) people would completely misinterpret my public statement dated 11th February 2019 regarding the Bharat Ratna itself by sadly misrepresenting my view of it.”He added, “Although I have lived abroad most of my life my Indian roots have been strong all along as not only was I born in India (so was my mother and my father and their parents), I have family in India. By upbringing, and through informed reflection I have always had the highest regard for the Indian Republic, its vast diversity and its noble institution of recognizing its exceptional individuals from all backgrounds with civilian awards—the highest of them being the Bharat Ratna, recently announced for my father, the late Dr. Bhupen Hazarika.”

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