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5h ago

Karnataka Picks Booker Winner Banu Mushtaq to Open Mysuru Dasara as Police File Cases Over Communal Posts

The International Booker laureate is being honored for Kannada literary achievement rooted in public activism.

Banu Mushtaq, author of Heart Lamp, is the first Kannada writer to have won the International Booker Prize in London.
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Overview

  • Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that Banu Mushtaq will inaugurate Mysuru Dasara on September 22, with the 11-day festival concluding on October 2.
  • Banu Mushtaq, author of Heart Lamp, is the first Kannada writer to win the International Booker Prize, a recognition cited by the government in its choice.
  • Udupi district police registered two FIRs over social-media posts that targeted her invitation with communal remarks, citing Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 353(2).
  • The accused were identified in reports as Jagadish Udupa and Sudeep Shetty Nitte, whose Facebook posts questioned her selection on religious grounds.
  • Mushtaq said she was honored by the invitation, while officials highlighted her background in farmers’ organisations, Kannada movements and progressive causes.