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Journalism of Courage
With just over a year to go for the Assembly elections in West Bengal, the political arena in the state heated up this week as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP targeted each other bitterly, prompting other parties to allege that the ruling party and the main Opposition in the state were polarising the political environment.
On Monday, during the Budget Session of the Assembly, Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari targeted the Mamata Banerjee-led government, alleging Saraswati Puja was being “obstructed” in the state. The BJP sought an adjournment motion to discuss the issue, but when Speaker Biman Banerjee did not allow it to be debated, the BJP MLAs walked out of the Assembly in protest.
After four BJP MLAs, including him, were suspended, Adhikari accused the TMC government of being “anti-Hindu” and appeasing Muslims. The following day, the TMC introduced a privilege motion against Adhikari and Banerjee launched a scathing attack on the BJP, challenging it to prove its allegation that she had connections with Bangladeshi militants.
“If they (BJP) can prove that I have connections with terrorists of Bangladesh and Jammu and Kashmir, I will resign as Chief Minister immediately,” she said on the floor of the House.
The CM also said, “I do not engage in discussions about religion, caste, or creed. I am a daughter of a Brahmin family and my father, a freedom fighter, passed away when he was young. I learned Chandi Path from him and I hold these values dear.” She also listed her government’s initiatives for Hindus, pointing to the Jagannath temple in Purba Medinipur and a skywalk at the Kali temple in Dakshineswar near Kolkata.
Targeting the BJP over the recent stampede at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, she said, “I respect Maha Kumbh, but what they have turned it into is sad. They are saying 30 people died, but thousands of bodies have been swept away … They have hidden hundreds of bodies to bring down the toll. Maha Kumbh has turned into a ‘Mrityu Kumbh (Kumbh of death)’ under the BJP rule.”
This led to an uproar, with the BJP immediately jumping on the comments to emphasise that its accusation that the TMC and Banerjee were “anti-Hindu” had been proved right. Adhikari protested at the Assembly and met Governor C V Ananda Bose while state BJP president and Union Minister Sukanta Majumder wrote to Bose on Wednesday, alleging the CM had hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus.
On Thursday, Bose weighed in, saying, “I did not want to engage in debate. In a democratic infrastructure, a CM is entitled to review any situation based on political ideology. This is the beauty of democracy. But I think Kumbh Mela is ‘mukti mela’, it is ‘mrityunjay mela (celebration of victory over death)’.”
The TMC alleged that the BJP was trying to polarise Hindu votes for the Assembly polls. “But, it is Bengal, people are politically aware. So, it will not benefit as the people of Bengal will not accept the divisive politics of the BJP,” said party leader and state parliamentary affairs minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay.
Reiterating his party colleagues’ allegations, BJP leader Rahul Sinha said Banerjee wanted to engage in minority appeasement and had “humiliated Hindus”.
“From Bengal, people have visited Kumbh in droves and that is why Banerjee is worried,” he claimed. “That is why she wants to polarise minority votes and is saying such derogatory things. All Hindus should protest against this.”
The Congress and the CPI(M), which contested the last Assembly elections in alliance but failed to win any seat, targeted both the TMC and the BJP, alleging they were in cahoots with each other.
“Both parties have planned this are doing politics to divide the people of West Bengal communally,” alleged CPI(M) central committee member and former Lok Sabha MP Sujan Chakraborty. “The BJP had no presence, even at the panchayat level, during Left rule. After Mamata Banerjee came to power, the TMC invited the BJP and the RSS. The central leadership of the BJP is helping Mamata remain in power. That is why the CM is saying she will complain to Narendra Modi about Suvendu Adhikari. She knows the PM will give her more importance than Suvendu.”
Former state Congress president and ex-MP Adhir Chowdhury said, “You will see more such drama before the Assembly elections. Mamata Banerjee knows she will get the votes of Muslims by creating fear of the BJP. Now, she is doing competitive Hinduism to get Hindu votes. That is why she is talking about her caste and saying that she has built a Jagannath temple in Digha. In the Assembly, there have been no discussions on unemployment, industry, and other topics related to the state’s development.”
