Left, Right and Centre: Bharat Ratna caught in politics

New Delhi: The top civilian honour in India, the Bharat Ratna, is never short of controversy. It’s yet again caught in politics, this time of the Left, Right and the Centre.
In the Left corner is the veteran Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPI-M) leader Jyoti Basu who had described his party's refusal to let him become prime minister in the mid-90s 'a historic blunder' and it is now clear that the man who holds the record for being India's longest serving chief minister may never be know as Bharat Ratna Jyoti Basu.
Scotching all rumours that he in the Bharat Ratna race, the CPI-M has said the party does not accept state awards, a stand echoed by junior partner Communist Party of India (CPI) as well.
On Saturday night Basu, too, said, "I am not in the race for Bharat Ratna."
“We are anti-establishment. We are fighting the state for a socialist society. So, we are against any state awards,” CPI leader AB Bardhan said.
Left's reluctance to accept the award may bring relief to the Congress.
But while it can avoid being forced to honour Jyoti Basu, saying no to Mayawati may not be easy for the government. The UP Chief Minister has proposed her mentor Kanshi Ram's name for the honour.
Bharat Ratna is no stranger to controversy. The debate this year was prompted by a letter written by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK Advani to the Prime Minister recommending the top honour for former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “Vajpayee is among India's great leaders. His contribution to the country is immense. We hope he is honoured with the Bharat Ratna.”
So while the Centre has not made up its mind on whether to confer the hounor this year, there is speculation that it could perform a balancing act by having two awardees to avoid a political spat.
Or the Congress may seek inspiration from its former leader Narasimha Rao who famously said, “Sometimes not taking a decision is also a decision.”