Raising the issue of Union Home Minister Amit Shah garlanding the wrong statue rather than that of adivasi icon and freedom fighter Birsa Munda and questioning his claims of appeasement politics from the courtyard of Dakhineshwar temple, the Trinamool Congress on Friday said Mr. Shah and the BJP were insulting the culture of Bengal.
On Thursday Mr. Shah had garlanded a statue at Bankura, which according to locals was statue of a tribal hunter, and not Birsa Munda. When the news spread, the local BJP leaders put a photograph of Birsa Munda on the statue.
“ Bohiragato ( outsiders) are at it again! Union Home Minister @AmitShah is so ignorant of Bengal’s culture that he insulted Bhagwan Birsa Munda by garlanding a wrong idol & placed his photo at someone else’s foot. Will he ever respect Bengal?” said a tweet from the Trinamool Congress’s official handle.
Later in the evening while addressing a press conference, TMC MP Sukendu Sekhar Roy raised the issue and said it was unfortunate that the Home Minister has not done his homework and insulted tribal people.
The TMC also took on the Home Minister for his remarks on appeasement politics made from the courtyard of the Dakhineshwar temple.
“Sri Ramakrishna worshipped Goddess Kali at Dakhineshwar, but also went to Church and is said to have practised all religions. Was Ramakrishna doing appeasement,” Mr Roy asked. Mr. Shah had said earlier in the day that the rich “tradition of spirituality in West Bengal has been tarnished by appeasement politics”.
Responding to Mr. Shah’s remarks targeting the TMC government, the party issued a statement saying, “The People of Bengal are ready to fight the battle. The people of Bengal will accept the challenge”.
The party also responded to the BJP leader’s remarks that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wanted to make her nephew Abhishek Banerjee the Chief Minister.
“And why does he always make wild personal accusations against Mamata Banerjee when there is no basis? What credentials does Mr Jay Shah have to suddenly hold one of India’s top administrative cricket posts? What magic formula did Mr Jay Shah have to become BCCI secretary out of nowhere?” the TMC statement said.
The party statement also dismissed claims by the BJP leader of the party winning 200 seats in the next Assembly polls and said Mr Shah’s predictions and numbers were totally wrong in the previous elections of Bihar in 2015, Delhi in 2015 and 2020 and in other State elections.
