A day after her comments on Goddess Kali at a media event courted controversy, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra on Wednesday faced charges after a BJP leader, Jiten Chatterjee, filed an FIR accusing her of hurting religious feelings, according to news agency ANI.
Reacting to this, Moitra tweeted, "Bring it on BJP! Am a Kali worshipper. I am not afraid of anything. Not your ignoramuses. Not your goons. Not your police. And most certainly not your trolls. Truth doesn't need back up forces."
Mahua Moitra had earlier said her comments had been twisted by trolls as her support for a hugely controversial film poster shared by filmmaker Leena Manimekalai featuring the Goddess smoking.
At a media event in Kolkata, Moitra said that she had every right as an individual to imagine Goddess Kali as a "meat-eating and alcohol-accepting goddess" as every person has the right to worship God in their own way.
"For me, Goddess Kali is a meat-eating and alcohol-accepting goddess. And if you go to Tarapith (a major Shakti peeth in West Bengal's Birbhum district), you will see sadhus smoking. That is the version of Kali people worship (there). I, within Hinduism, being a Kali worshipper, have the right to imagine Kali in that way; that is my freedom," said Ms Moitra.
Meanwhile, the Bengal BJP leadership has sought the arrest of Moitra. The party said it would move the court alleging police inaction if no measure was initiated against her in 10 days.
"According to the norms of the Sanatan Hindu dharma, Goddess Kali is never worshipped as a goddess who consumes alcohol and meat. Hindus had been revering Goddess Kali for ages as a symbol of power against evil. Her comments have hurt religious sentiments. We demand her arrest in the light of the statement against Goddess Kali," BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said.
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