I was proposing civil disobedience with smile: Arundhati Roy over Ranga-Billa row
New Delhi/IBNS: Clarifying her reference to murderers Ranga-Billa while asking people to fill out National Population Register (NPR) with fictitious names, writer-activist Arundhati Roy in the face of criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday said she was proposing a civil disobedience with a smile.
During interviews to several television channels, Roy said as quoted by NDTV, "I said that as a response to those lies we should collectively enter ridiculous information when they came to gather our personal data for the NPR. What I was proposing was civil disobedience with a smile."
Roy, who was herself protesting against NPR in the national capital on Wednesday, courted a controversy saying, "They will visit your homes, take your name, phone number and ask for documents like Aadhaar and driving licences. The NPR will become a database for NRC."
"We need to fight against it and have a plan. When they visit your home for NPR, and ask for your name give them some different name. We will decide on five names, such as Ranga Billa, Kung Fu kutta...For address, say 7 Race Course Road. A lot of subversions will be needed, we are not born to face lathis and bullets," she added.
Like several opposition parties in the country, Roy on Thursday said the NPR would serve as a database for the NRC.
Though Chief Ministers of West Bengal and Kerala, Mamata Banerjee and Pinarayi Vijayan respectively, have put on hold all works related to the NPR, the Centre on Tuesday sanctioned Rs. 3,941.35 crore for the updation of NPR.
Who are Ranga and Billa?
The names of Ranga and Billa date back to a crime of 1970s, when siblings Geeta and Sanjay were killed by Kuljeet Singh alias Ranjga Khus and Jasbir Singh alias Billa after the victims were kidnapped for ransom. Both were hanged later.
How BJP leaders criticised Roy?
Countering the writer-activist, BJP leader Uma Bharti said, "An educated person like Arundhati Roy does not remember the names of Subhas Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh, Chandrasekhar Azad, Ashfaqulla Khan but Ranga-Billa."
"I feel ashamed to talk about this woman to whom Ranga, Billa like people are idols. The statement is anti-women, anti-humanity.." she added.
Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and BJP leader, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, said, "If these are our intellectuals, then we definitely need a register of these people... She should feel ashamed. Such statements are betrayal to the country."
(Image Credit: Arundhati Roy Facebook)
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