Tamil poet and lyricist Vairamuthu has turned down the ONV award. He officially announced that he would not accept the award. Many people had come out against giving the ONV award to Vairamuthu, who is facing meet charges.
The ONV Cultural Academy has said it will reconsider the award, which has drawn strong criticism. It was after this that Vairamuthu announced his rejection of the award. Vairamuthu said the ongoing controversy was an insult to the ONV itself and there was no need to prove honesty.
Vairamuthu said he would donate Rs 3 lakh and Rs 2 lakh from his own pocket and donate Rs 5 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund. Singer Chinmayi Sreepada, one of the 17 women accused of meeting Vairamuthu, and actresses Rima Kallingal, Geethu Mohandas and Parvathy, among others, have demanded the withdrawal of the award.
