Kolkata, Feb 4 (PTI) In a novel way to protest West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s alleged derogatory comment against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP supporters on Sunday symbolically fed honey to a photograph of the TMC supremo to “sweeten her language”.
During a rally taken out by the BJP’s youth wing in Kolkata, the saffron party workers said they also carried copies of ‘Barnaparichay’, a popular primer written by Iswarchandra Vidyasagar, a 19th-century polymath and an icon in the state, to remind her about the richness of Bengali language.
The Trinamool Congress, on the other hand, stressed the need for self-introspection for the BJP, alleging that the state’s leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikari and others also talk about Banerjee in a derogatory way.
The chief minister allegedly used an offensive word against Modi during her recent dharna demanding release of MGNREGA funds due to West Bengal.
“We deplore the way Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has talked about a respected leader like Modiji. This goes against the culture of Bengal and our heritage,” BJP youth leader Indranil Khan told reporters.
“This also goes against the ideals of luminaries like Vidyasagar who had introduced ‘Barnaparichay’ to initiate Bengalis with the rich language. We are feeding honey on the lips of the CM (in a photo) as a symbolic step,” he said.
Reacting to this, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that while Banerjee has always been respectful towards her political opponents, BJP leaders like Suvendu Adhikari refer to her as a ‘thief’ and use derogatory words about national leaders of other non-BJP parties like Congress.
“Let them apologise for such expressions first,” Ghosh said. PTI SUS NN
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