MYSORE:
Rationalist, socialist and progressive thinker Prof K Ramadas died of
cardiac arrest in the city on Tuesday evening, at the age of 66. He
is survived by wife Nirmala and daughter Sneha.
Ramadas,
a retired Kannada professor of Maharaja’s College, had groomed many
of today’s Kannada writers. Born in Sagar in Shimoga district, Ramadas
lost his father at an early age and was brought up by his mother Manjamma,
who worked as midwife at a government hospital.
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Well-known
writer P Lankesh was his teacher. He was influenced by Socialist leaders
Ram Manohar Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan and other leftist thinkers. He
had identified himself with all atheist and progressive movements
in the State and had worked with Lankesh and others to build up the
Karnataka Pragathi Ranga. During Emergency, he travelled all over the
State on his bike, carrying the message of socio-political change.
His residence
‘Charvaka’ at Kuvempunagar hosted many inter-caste marriages at
its ‘Manava Mantapa’. He raised his voice against superstitions
and was a staunch standard-bearer of “scientific thinking”. He lent
his voice to many Dalit and farmers’ forums too. He was in the vanguard
of the agitation over the Gokak report in Mysore, influencing several
youths. A committed rationalist, Prof Ramadas never minced words when
taking on “the corrupt, dishonest and hypocritical”. Typically,
he did not even spare then President Shankar Dayal Sharma when the latter
Visited an ashram, saying the head of the nation “should not promote
superstition”.
A close
friend of writer Poornachandra Tejaswi, the professor used to say that,
after Tejaswi’s sudden death, he felt ‘abandoned’.
Jnanapeetha
awardee Prof U R Ananthamurthy has mourned the death of rationalist
Prof K Ramadas.
He said,
Prof Ramadas has been his guide. “Whenever I did a mistake he used
to correct me. He used to criticise those whom he loved very much. I
have lost one more good friend” , he said.
Chief
Minister H D Kumaraswamy, Suttur Shivaratri Deshikendra Swamiji, ministers
G T Devegowda, H S Mahadeva Prasad, former VC of Kuvempu University
P Venkataramaiah, former MP V Srinivas Prasad, members of the CPM and
the JD(S) have condoled his death.
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