West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a ‘Sanhati rally’ (rally for communal harmony) in Kolkata on the day of consecration of Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22 and used the platform to throw a challenge at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the upcoming Lok Sabha election.
Ms. Banerjee accused the BJP of indulging in “politics over religion” and labelled the saffron party “anti-women” for “omitting” Sita from its discourse on Ram. “They [BJP] talk about Ram, but what about Sita? She was all along with Ram during his exile. They don’t speak about her as they are anti-women. We are worshippers of Goddess Durga, so they should not try to lecture us about religion,” the Trinamool Congress chairperson said.
Ayodhya Ram temple inauguration LIVE updates, Jan 22 2024
After offering prayers at the Kalighat temple, a gurdwara, a mosque and a church during her five-km rally from Hazra to Park Circus, Ms. Banerjee touched upon almost every political issue, from the Centre’s alleged denial of payment of wages under the MGNREGA scheme, to the National Register of Citizens (NRC), while emphasising on communal harmony and religious amity.
“The people of Bengal have a great responsibility to save the country, to save religious harmony and save people of all religions,” Ms. Banerjee said at the culmination of the procession. With slogans of ‘Hindu- Muslim Bhai Bhai’ , she exhorted the people to fight BJP in the upcoming general election.
Trinamool general secretary Abhishek Banerjee also urged the people not to vote in the name of religion but to vote in the interest of the State.
Religious leaders of different faiths also addressed the gathering before the party chairperson sounded the bugle for the upcoming Lok Sabha election. “I do not have any objections if someone worships Ram or prays to Allah. My objection is that unemployment is the highest in the country. There are attempts to interfere with the food habits of people,” the Trinamool chairperson said.
Left trying to control INDIA alliance
Not only did she target the BJP, accusing the party of splitting Hindu votes, she also accused “some leaders who are actually brokers” from the Muslim community who “try to split Muslim votes”. She came down heavily on the Left partiers and said they had done nothing for Muslims in the State.
“I suggested the name INDIA during the Opposition bloc’s meeting. But whenever I attend the meeting, I find the Left trying to control it,” Ms. Banerjee said. The Chief Minister added that despite such insults, she has “adjusted and attended the INDIA bloc meetings”.
The Trinamool chairperson described the developments as “unacceptable” and added that “she cannot agree with those with whom I had fought for 34 years”.
The remarks comes at a time when the Trinamool Congress leadership is having seat-sharing discussions with the Congress. The Trinamool leadership had said that the Congress is indulging in “unrealistic bargaining”.
Kolkata also saw several rallies celebrating the temple inauguration, including one by the Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari.
Scuffle at Jadavpur
There was a scuffle at Jadavpur University between the students belonging to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, who held a rally celebrating the temple inauguration, and those from the Students Federation of India (SFI), who brought out a rally for communal harmony. The SFI supporters also got into an altercation with the police personnel and organised a rally outside the university premises raising the pitch that they will not allow ‘communal politics’.
