Solitary Confinement was Challenging, Says McKinsey Ex-MD Rajat Gupta

Anticipation of the Ayodhya verdict loomed large as the 8^th edition of Bangalore Literature Festival began on Saturday, but the almost-packed hall for former McKinsey MD Rajat Gupta’s session belied worries.

The session, Mind Without Fear, moderated by Narayan Ramachandran, saw Gupta in candid form. About his association with Sri Lankan-American former hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam, he said, “The govt tried to portray him as a great friend of mine. He wasn't. We had a professional relationship. I knew of Raj’s reputation as a great investor & the reason I met him was because he was a great benefactor to the Indian School of Business.”

Gupta had quite a bit to say about the United States criminal justice system. “It is pretty good but the fact is there are more incarcerations in the United States than any other country — 3 million.”

The criminal justice system needs extensive reform, he said, before revealing it’s one of the areas he’s focussing his efforts on. His solitary confinement at the Devens Correctional Facility in Ayer, Massachusetts, was nothing less than torture, he added. “I was put in solitary confinement for 7 weeks. The draconian part is you’re not allowed to reveal it, so I couldn’t tell my family I was in solitary confinement. It was a challenging time for me but I decided to convert it into an opportunity. I practised Vipassana (meditation technique) & was fortunate enough to have the Bhagavad Gita, which they initially tried to take away from me. I got the chance to read it cover to cover 6-7 times,” he recalled.

Box: Karnad was like oxygen to us

The session discussing the life & work of Girish Karnad saw Kannada cultural exponents Jayant Kaikini, K Marulasiddappa & B Jayashree talking about his contribution to Kannada theatre. Calling Karnad a man of great common sense, Kaikini said, “He may have been carrying a defibrillator during his last years but he was like oxygen to us. He always encouraged up & coming writers.” Marulasiddappa said Karnad was a literary icon for whom life, plays & activism weren't separate elements. The session ended with a video of Karnad giving his last acceptance speech when he received the Amar Ujala Shabd Samman in 2018.

Author awarded

The New India Foundation awarded the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize to Ornit Shani for her book, How India Became Democratic. Carrying a prize purse of Rs 15 lakh & a citation, the award was announced by NIF trustees Nandan Nilekani, Ramachandra Guha, Manish Sabharwal & Srinath Raghavan.

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