Sharad Joshi’s family refuses Padma award

Late Shetkari Sanghatana founder's kin say his work for good of farmers is not reflected in the policies of the government, refuse the prestigious award

A year after yoga guru Baba Ramdev and spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar declined to accept the prestigious Padma awards accorded to them, slated to be distributed on the occasion of Republic Day last year, similar controversy has struck the event this year as well. Now, family members of the late Sharad Joshi, founder of the Shetkari Sanghatana, have also declined the Padma Vibhushan that was conferred upon the economist and agriculturist posthumously.

Joshi's elder daughter Shreya Shahane had last week informed the Union home ministry that they would not be accepting this award because there is reflection of his ideologies in the execution of policies for farmers in the country, keeping them far from the centre of the economy as they deserve to be.

Incidentally, Joshi had also declined the Padma Shri award in 1992 for similar reasons, and had not been nominated since.

Shahane, who currently resides in Canada, had received a call from the home ministry exhorting her to accept the civilian award on Joshi's behalf. However, she politely refused and raised her disappointment over the lack of governmental concern for her father's work when he was living.

Shahane could not be contacted for comment. However, Sureshchandra Mhatre, a close aide of Joshi's, confirmed the development to Mirror, saying, "There is no aim to degrade the great award, but Joshi's dreams are far from fulfilled. Decades ago, he had demanded an agriculture- centric economy and had refused to accept an award for the non-implementation of any such policy." Mhatre added, "His kin feel that such awards cannot evaluate Joshi's work. Why was he never nominated for so many years while he lived?"

Joshi, known as a stalwart farmer leader, had passed away on December 11 last year at his residence in Pune. He was one of the tallest leaders to grace the state's politics during the 1980s. Joshi came into his own when he founded the Shetkari Sanghatana in 1979, to take up the cause of thousands of onion, cotton and sugarcane farmers across Maharashtra. He was among the first to agitate against higher prices by linking production costs to the price of agricultural produce.