From shifting of the Amar Jawan Jyoti in Delhi to dissolution of the Planning Commission of India, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee picked every weapon in her arsenal on Sunday to target the Central government and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) while celebrating the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in Kolkata.
Hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to light up the holographic image of Netaji at India Gate, Banerjee, who garlanded Bose’s old statue in the Maidan, accused the Centre of destroying India’s federal structure and downplaying the history of Bengal and the nation.
Banerjee did not name any BJP leader during her 40-minute speech but the targets of her attack were apparent. She even referred to the proposed changes in the service rules for Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers and freezing of the bank account of the Missionaries of Charity, the institution set up by Saint Teresa in Kolkata where she worked all her life.
Demanding a national holiday on January 23, Banerjee criticized the Centre for winding up the Planning Commission of India that Bose had envisaged.
After coming to power in 2014, the first National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Modi dissolved the Planning Commission of India and replaced it with the Niti Aayog.
“Whether it is the clarion call of ‘Jai Hind’ raised by Netaji, the national anthem composed by Rabindranath Tagore or the national song penned by novelist Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Bengal has been the torchbearer. Why is Bengal being ignored today in this manner? Nobody can ignore Bengal. I challenge them. Nobody can wipe out the history of Bengal and India. Those trying it will burn their hands. Lighting a torch or setting up a statue of Netaji does not bestow the respect he deserves. Why is Netaji’s disappearance shrouded in mystery 75 years after Independence?” asked Banerjee.
