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Storm in Andhra over honorary doctorates for Balayogi, Jayaprada

Ch Sushil Rao in Hyderabad

Lok Sabha Speaker Ganti Mohana Chandra Balayogi and Telugu Desam Party's Rajya Sabha member and actress Jayaprada are in the eye of a storm following the proposal of Sri Venkateshwara University, Tirupati, to confer honorary doctorates on them.

While students' organisations are enraged at the university executive council's proposal, state Governor C Rangarajan is learnt to have expressed displeasure at doctorates being conferred on Telugu Desam Party leaders.

Out of the nine ''eminent'' people chosen for the honour - on the occasion of the university's 40th convocation on December 12 -- four are either members of the TDP or are associated with it.

When the list was sent to the governor who is also the university chancellor, Rangarajan returned it to the university, asking them to 'reconsider' some of the names.

However, the university refused to budge, and sent the same list back for approval.

The governor is said to have struck off the name of TDP leader and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams board member Radhakrishna Raju off the list.

As the opposition Congress tried to capitalise on the issue, Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu has reportedly asked both Balayogi and Jayapada not to accept the doctorates.

Noted film director K Raghavendra Rao's name also figures in the list. But Rao, who is electronic media advisor to the state government and considered close to the chief minister, has politely turned down the `honour'.

''I have always avoided awards and honours. Therefore there is no question of me accepting the doctorate,'' he said. Last year, Rao directed the national award-winning film Annamayya.

Perhaps because of the controversy, Balayogi is yet to give his consent for receiving the doctorate. The Speaker will be away in Male attending a conference of parliamentarians on the day.

Jayaprada, however, has reportedly given her consent for the `honour'. This could not be confirmed as there was no response from her residence in Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, students organisations have taken to the streets to protest the university's decision to honour film personalities, especially Jayaprada.

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, a sister organisation of the Bharatiya Janata Party which is being supported by the TDP at the Centre, is vehemently opposing the decision and has boycotted classes and staged a dharna.

The university also plans to honour linguist Bh Krishnamurthy, well-known architect Laurie Baker, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Y Venugopal Reddy and External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh.

This is the second occasion - the first being when film star Rajendra Prasad was to be honoured by another university -- in recent times when the issue of conferring honorary doctorates had created a controversy.

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