West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar accused the Kolkata Police on Friday of obstructing the party's efforts to celebrate 'Pashchimbanga Divas' by attempting to prevent a two-wheeler rally led by him from reaching Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's house on Elgin Road in the city's south. Conversely, the ruling Trinamool Congress attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party by accusing the saffron party of trying to impose an unspontaneous celebration with which the people have no connection.
A political brawl over statehood day observance has been ongoing for the past two years between the Trinamool Congress-run West Bengal government and the ruling party's biggest opposition in the state, the BJP.
Although the government has promulgated a resolution in the state assembly and earmarked Poila Baisakh, the New Year's Day of Bengalis, for West Bengal Day celebrations, the state BJP has designated June 20 under a central notification to celebrate the state foundation day. On that day in 1947, the undivided Bengal Legislative Assembly convened and voted for the partition of the state between East and West Bengal. The latter remained with India and the former was incorporated into Pakistan.
Also read: Nine killed in Purulia road accident
The Friday showdown between BJP Yuva Morcha activists and city police occurred outside the Bhowanipore home of Jan Sangh founder, Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, where the workers had gathered to pay homage to the leader and then intended to ride two-wheelers and on foot to Netaji Bhavan, a kilometre away.
"We informed the police that we will only have the Tricolour and not party flags in this rally. Even then the police hindered our movement and arrested our workers," Majumdar claimed.
Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari had, in the past, organized a colourful procession of BJP lawmakers from the assembly complex to Shyama Prasad Mukherjee's statue on Red Road in central Kolkata two kilometres away and garlanded it.
This is a historic day which we need to commemorate. On this day in 1947, the West Bengal Assembly led by Shyama Prasad Mukherjee voted in favour of staying in India," Adhikari told the crowd, amid Vande Mataram slogans and passionate calls by rally participants to mark the day as 'Paschimbanga Divas'.
The TMC, however, criticised the BJP’s attempts to associate the importance of the day with the psyche of the common people of the state.
Also read: Bengal gets first AC local train rake, services to begin soon
"The Bengalis have already decided on their statehood day on the first day of the Bengali calendar. It's a day dear to the hearts of every Bengali. The state assembly has already approved it. It doesn't matter where a motley group of BJP workers congregate and attempt to impose a celebration which is not spontaneous and with which the people have no direct connection," said TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh.
Follow us
