Top News

Amidst the preparations for Durga Puja in Kolkata, BJP's West Bengal unit president Samik Bhattacharya has appealed to the people to remain united, referring to the communal riots of 1946. He said that at that time non-Bengali communities like Gupta and Jaiswal had supported the Bengalis and saved them from extinction. Bhattacharya said that it is important to maintain such an environment in Kolkata in which people can celebrate Durga Puja peacefully.

The BJP leader said this in the 'Khunti Puja' program organized by Shatdal Sangh in Bowbazar area of ​​central Kolkata on Sunday. Khunti Puja is considered the formal beginning of preparations for Durga Puja. Opposition parties have reacted strongly to his statement. The Congress linked it to electoral politics, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC) alleged that Bhattacharya had “insulted” Bengalis.

Bhattacharya said that one thing must be said while standing in North Kolkata. Had the Gupta and Jaiswal communities not been here and had they not spent their entire wealth in providing the iron needed to make swords, the civilized and affluent Bengalis seen today in North Kolkata would not have existed.

He said that in difficult times these communities supported the Bengalis and unitedly supported them. Along with Bhattacharya, state Industries Minister Tapas Roy and North Kolkata BJP President Tamaghan Ghosh were also present in the program.

Bhattacharya claimed that now Durga Puja will be organized without restrictions and in a peaceful manner. He alleged that in the last few years, Durga Puja was in “almost serious trouble” in many areas of West Bengal bordering Bangladesh.

The BJP leader also mentioned the recent death of father-son sculptors Hargovind Das and Chandan Das in Murshidabad. He alleged that both of them were murdered allegedly because they had talent in making idols of Kali, Saraswati and Lakshmi.

Bhattacharya accused the previous TMC government of appeasement politics and cited the example of Beldanga. He said that the Durga idol immersion organized by Bharat Sevashram Sangh there was earlier done in a pond and the organizers did not get access to the river.

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh reacted sharply to Bhattacharya's statement supporting non-Bengali communities. He accused the BJP leader of “insulting” Bengalis. Kunal Ghosh said that Bengalis have their own tradition and history of freedom movement. They have their own identity and uniqueness.

Referring to the approaching municipal elections, Congress alleged that BJP leaders are cleverly trying to get votes by raising the issue of division.

Bengal Pradesh Congress President Subhankar Sarkar said that the BJP is deliberately trying to break and divide the Bengali heritage. He said that Rabindranath Tagore himself had taken to the streets to stop the partition of Bengal.