Stripped of Bengal top award over Netaji remarks, slapped with FIR: Who is BJP MP Ananta Maharaj

He was conferred Banga Bibhushan by the previous Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in February this year, barely a couple of months before the Assembly elections, in recognition of his work for the socio-economic development of his community. This move was seen as part of Mamata’s efforts to reach out to Rajbanshis. The elections however saw the BJP storm to power after handing a crushing defeat to the TMC.

On Friday, the Cooch Behar police registered an FIR against Maharaj for his alleged derogatory remarks against Netaji. The FIR was lodged after a local resident lodged a complaint against him with the police.

On Wednesday, CM Adhikari directed the police to arrest those making derogatory comments on Netaji, saying the law is equal for the MPs, MLAs and government officials. “I have asked the police to take stringent action against those making derogatory remarks against Netaji on social media. Police have been directed to arrest those behind it,” the CM told media persons.

Maharaj’s remarks apparently prompted some of his followers to post similar comments against Netaji. On Friday, five people close to him were arrested by the Cooch Behar police in this regard. “Multiple FIRs have been filed, and over 100 social media posts have been deleted. The scrutiny of such posts is in progress,” said police sources.

Row over remarks

The row erupted after a video of Maharaj’s speech at a programme held recently in Dinhata in Cooch Behar went viral on social media. During his speech, he purportedly made controversial remarks about Netaji and the Azad Hind Fauj, triggering widespread criticism. He allegedly called Netaji a “war criminal”.

Maharaj then also reportedly attacked his own party, claiming that “It was I who brought the BJP to West Bengal and north Bengal. A government was formed. Now, they give importance to ‘dogs’ but not me. I say one thing, yet they spread a different kind of propaganda about me. Whose words should I heed? Whom should I trust? They have destroyed me in this manner.”

He also raked up his demand for a separate Cooch Behar state to be carved out of Bengal, saying “Our demand is not merely about ‘returning’ to a state status (Cooch Behar was once a princely state which merged with the Indian Union in 1949), there are government commitments, treaties, and letters – you should read the letters. The issue is that we have become weak; that is why they honour neither the agreement nor the Constitution – they are acting unconstitutionally. Whom should I complain to? Which government? All governments are the same.”

Maharaj’s rise

A day after the BJP government stripped him of the Banga Bibhushan award amid the raging controversy, Maharaj released a video on social media, expressing regret over his remarks. “I am sincerely sorry if anyone was hurt by some of my inadvertent remarks regarding Netaji,” he said, in what appeared to be a bid to contain the growing backlash.

Maharaj heads a faction of the Greater Cooch Behar Peoples’ Association (GCPA), which has been demanding a separate statehood or a Union Territory status for Greater Cooch Behar for years now. Rajbanshis, as per the 2011 Census, are the single largest SC group in Bengal, accounting for over 18% of the state’s 21.4 million from the community.

In view of the Rajbanshi vote, the BJP had in 2023 nominated Maharaj to the Rajya Sabha from Bengal. The TMC, too, has been wooing Rajbanshis for several years.

After the TMC’s resounding win in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in the state, then CM Mamata had made an “unplanned” detour from Siliguri to meet Maharaj at his home in Chakchaka in Cooch Behar. The meeting had fuelled speculation of the Rajbanshi leader joining the TMC in the aftermath of the BJP’s defeat in the Cooch Behar Lok Sabha seat. He, however, stuck to the BJP despite making critical comments against the party periodically.

Oppn’s pitch for arrest

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh and senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury demanded immediate arrest of Maharaj over the Netaji row.

CPI(M) state secretary Md Salim called the BJP government’s action against Maharaj an “eyewash”. “Who cares about Banga Bibhushan? This is an eyewash to protect the BJP’s Rajya Sabha member. Harsher steps need to be taken by the government to show its sincerity,” Salim said.

G Devarajan, general secretary of the Forward Bloc – which was formed by Netaji after he quit the Congress – wrote to Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan, urging him to “take immediate cognisance” of Maharaj’s statements, “examine the authenticated video and transcript available in the public domain, and initiate appropriate proceedings under the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Rajya Sabha for conduct unbecoming of a Member of Parliament.”

In his letter to Radhakrishnan, Devarajan also stated that Maharaj be “firmly directed to desist from making such derogatory and historically distorted statements against Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, the INA and other national heroes of India’s freedom struggle, and that appropriate action be taken under any other applicable law if his subsequent conduct or the material circulated by his supporters is found to attract legal liability”.

“Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and the soldiers of the INA belong to the entire nation. Their sacrifices cannot be insulted, trivialised or rewritten by anyone, least of all by a sitting Member of Parliament. We trust that your high constitutional office will uphold the dignity of Parliament and the honour of India’s freedom fighters by taking this matter with the seriousness it deserves,” the Forward Bloc leader added.