Bangla Academy Literary Award-2024 list cancelled
The government has cancelled the Bangla Academy Literary Award-2024 two days after its announcement to honour ten individuals for their notable contributions to various aspects of Bangla literature.
In a notice issued today (25 January), signed by the Director General of the Bangla Academy Professor Mohammad Azam, it said, "The committee held a meeting at 6:00pm. Due to emerging social-political circumstances and some allegations raised regarding certain individuals on the award list, the need for reconsidering the previously announced list was discussed. A decision was made to investigate the allegations."
"As a result, the previously announced list has been cancelled. The list will be reissued after reconsideration within three working days."
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Earlier on 23 January, the academy announced the names of ten eminent writers for the award.
Playwright Syed Jamil Ahmed was supposed to receive Bangla Academy Literary Award for folklore, essayist Salimullah Khan for essays, Masud Khan for poetry, Selim Morshed for fiction, Shubhashish Sinha for drama and playwriting, Faruk Nawaz for children's literature, GH Habib for translation, Mohammad Shahjahan Mia for research, Rezaur Rahman for science and Mohammad Hanan for liberation war.
Today, Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki announced the cancellation on a post in his verified Facebook profile, saying, "...It should be noted that such bizarre and exclusive policies that allow for such awards need to be urgently reviewed.
"Furthermore, we must also examine how the Bangla Academy will be run, and the policies it will follow — everything needs to be looked at. We are heading towards a comprehensive reform of the academy. If the country can undergo reform, why not the Bangla Academy?"
