M Leelavathy, a well-known Malayalam writer, critic and a veteran of the literary world, turned 98 on Tuesday. However, she decided not to celebrate her birthday to express solidarity with the starving children of Gaza, inviting online trolling her way.
“When I see the children of Gaza, how can I get rice down my throat?” Leelavathy had said, reported The Indian Express.
The remark, however, did not sit well with a few people, who sought to troll her on social media. One troll wrote, “Teacher, you are tired of rice. See whether mandi (Yemeni dish) will go down your throat. Then, mother, you will be happy in your old age,” according to the report.
Responding to the online backlash, Leelavathy stood her ground and said that all children in the world are equal to her and that there was no politics behind her remark.
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{{/usCountry}}“All the children in the world are equal to me. I see them through the eyes of a mother. I am not afraid of the opposition and protest. Neither do I have enmity towards them. Children have no caste, religion or colour. I am sad when they are hungry. I don’t look into who their parents are,” IE report quoted her as saying.
The literary veteran also recalled the time she only ate porridge after hearing the news that children in Kerala’s Wayanad in 2019.
“There was no politics behind it. During the Onam in 2019, I only had porridge after coming across news about the starvation faced by the children of Wayanad. Those who oppose me are free to do so, and I hold no grudge against them. This is not the first time I am facing (such) attacks. I have faced stiff opposition from very early in my life,” a report by the Hindu quoted Leelavathy as saying.
Kerala politicians come in M Leelavathy’s support
Several political leaders in Kerala have come in support of Leelavathy, saying that such trolling is against the “values of Kerala”.
Kerala’s industries minister P Rajeeve, while responding to Leelavathy’s trolling, said that such people who engage in cyberattacks do not serve “anything positive for Keralites”.
“They are trying to make society retrogressive. I stand with the children of Gaza and Palestine,” he said, according to the IE report.
The state’s education minister, V Sivankutty, also expressed solidarity with the literary veteran. He said that her remarks are “borne out of her humanity.”
“Those who attack her words in such abusive language in the cyberworld question the very cultural values of Kerala. Kerala is forever indebted to Ms. Leelavathy’s contributions as a teacher, literary critic and author,” he said, reported the Hindu.