Countering the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC’s objections to chants of “Jai Sri Ram” at the recent function in Kolkata on the occasion of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s birth anniversary in the presence of PM Modi, BJP on Monday said the Bengal CM’s protest was aimed at appeasing TMC’s minority vote-bank ahead of the state polls.
“Lord Ram is central to the country’s consciousness. How can someone take offence at being greeted with Jai Sri Ram slogans? Moreover, Mamata Banerjee is not averse to routinely reciting Islamic verses in government events,” said Amit Malviya, BJP’s social media head and also party’s co-incharge for West Bengal.
He said the slogans of ‘Jai Sri Ram’ were chanted when the PM took the stage for which Banerjee had no reason to feel offended. “Unfortunately, the CM misused the occasion to appease her minority vote-bank for which she did not even spare an event dedicated to one of most celebrated icons of the country,” Malviya said. The party circulated a video claiming party cadres were “assaulted” in Bengal for chanting the slogan. BJP also cited how Modi, as Gujarat CM, while attending an event organised by Congress in the presence of then PM Manmohan Singh in 2013, handled a similar situation differently from the way Mamata reacted during the Kolkata function on January 23. The party cited the October 29, 2013 event organised by Gujarat Congress to celebrate the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel for which then PM Mammohan Singh was the chief guest. General elections were not far and Modi had already been declared NDA’s prime ministerial candidate. “Modi spoke at length about Patel although the crowd was not hospitable to him,” said a BJP functionary.