Chennai: Admirers and supporters of APJ Abdul Kalam have not reacted well to the allotment of his bungalow to Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma. A senior journalist from Tamil Nadu has launched a campaign demanding the former president's official bungalow be converted into a knowledge centre.
Managing Editor of Tamil news channel News7, R Bhagwan Singh said, “All we plead for is a knowledge centre. It serves the ideas he propounded till his last breath...” Hoping the Centre would reconsider its decision, he said, “I'm sure this happened without the knowledge of the Prime Minister. I'm sure he would intervene.” Posted on the International Petition Platform, the petition has so far been signed by more than 20,000 people. Singh said, “Thousands of Kalam's books and documents that he worked on through his life, the Veena that he often played, are being boxed up, so that Culture Minister, who has been in the news recently for his sexist and discriminatory comments, can move in. I'm shocked and appalled at this dishonour.”
India's missile man, Kalam lived in the house from 2007 till his death in July. His grand-nephew APJMJ Sheik Saleem, who recently joined the BJP wasn't too happy with the allotment either. He said, “We'd be happy if they start a knowledge centre in his name. If that doesn't happen, we would use the proposed memorial at Rameswaram to display his books.”
