In 2003, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sanghs (RSS) volunteer Dattopant Thengadi rejected the award until K. B. Hedgewar (RSS founder) and M. S. Golwalkar (RSS ideologue) are offered the Bharat Ratna. Civil servant S. R. Sankaran turned down the award in 2005 without citing any reason. In 2013, playback singer S. Janaki refused to accept her award and stated that "the award has come late in her five-and-half-decade long career." The singer also mentioned that she is not against the Government and expressed happiness for the recognition but requested the Government to "show some more consideration to the artists from the southern parts of the country." In 2014, family members of J. S. Verma who served as 27th Chief Justice of India refused the posthumous conferral stating that "Verma himself would not have accepted" the honour as he "never hankered or lobbied for any acclaim, reward or favour."