Mangaluru: Non-violence and humanism are the basic essence of nationalism and should be nurtured by us. But it is lacking in recent days,” said former deputy commissioner of the Dakshina Kannada district S Sasikanth Senthil on Wednesday, October 2.
He was delivering a talk on ‘Bapu and Nationality’ organised by Samadarshi Vedike at the auditorium of Brahma Baidarkala Garadi as part of the 150th birthday anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi.
Senthil said that Gandhi’s ideas and idealisms are still relevant to the society. Comparing himself to Sanjay Dutt’s character in the Bollywood movie “Munna Bhai MBBS”, he said, “I am also like Munna Bhai. Anything I do is based on the ideas and idealisms of Gandhiji. Whenever I am about to do something, I think of Mahatma Gandhi.”.
Stating that no other leader can be compared to the Mahatma, he stated that it is only Gandhiji who can be called the ‘Rashtrapita’ (father of the nation).
“Nationalism is a strong sense of unity. Even though members of a family can reside in different parts of the country, they are not divided and live in the sense of unity. Likewise, though the people of our country reside in different parts, we should not discriminate on the lines of caste and religion. We should rid our minds hatred and strengthen the bond of love,” Senthil added.
Earlier, Senthil inaugurated the programme “Gandhi – 150 Chinthana Yatre” at the premises of the Garadi temple, by lighting the lamp. The programme intends to spread the ideas and idealisms of Mahatma Gandhi through a skit, drawing, essay, speech, seminars etc. throughout the district.
Senior journalist Jagadish Koppa, scholar Prof B M Ichlangodu, Garadi president K Chittaranjan, organisers Dr Srinivas Kakkillaya, Gulabi Bilimale, Rajaram Tholpadi, Mohanchandra, Nagesh Kallur and others were present.
Resignation has not been accepted so far
During an interaction with the media Senthil revealed that his resignation has not yet been accepted. “I have tendered my resignation and done my job. I am not bothered about its acceptance or rejection and it is left to the government to do so. Now, I am free to express my feelings,” he said.
Speaking fondly about his time spent in Dakshina Kannada, he said that this is a peace-loving district and he had a nice experience working with the people and politicians. “Although there were some incidents that occurred in the district, it did not succeed in derailing the peace in the district,” he said.
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