Tathagatha Roy Calls Bengalis ‘Sweepers,’ Sparks A Row on Twitter

Roy said that the greatness of Bengalis was long gone & that they were either “sweeping floors” or “bar dancers” now

A file image of Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy, who has again raked up a storm by posting a series of anti-Bengali tweets. 

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ @tathagata2) 

Known for stoking controversy on social media, Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy has again raked up a storm by posting a series of anti-Bengali tweets, saying that the greatness of Bengalis was long gone and that Bengalis were either "sweeping floors" or working as "bar dancers" in Mumbai.

The tweets are in reference to the debate after the new draft of the education policy was released which suggested a three-language plan in which Hindi would be taught in schools in non-Hindi speaking states too.

But the clause was changed after Tamil Nadu accused the government of imposing Hindi on them.

‘They Only Make Noise For Political Reasons’

In response, the former Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) leader posted a thread of tweets on Twitter. One of his arguments was that the controversy was being riled up for political reasons. He said that he doesn’t understand the logic behind the argument of linking an adversity towards learning Hindi and quoting names such as Vidyasagar and Netaji. He goes on to tweet, that the era of these stalwarts is long gone.

Who will explain to them that the era of these stalwarts is long gone, and the greatness of Bengal is gone too. Now from Haryana to Kerala, Bengali boys are sweeping floors and Bengali girls are bar dancers in Mumbai, which was unthinkable before.

Tathagata Roy, Governor, Meghalaya

Commenting on the Opposition’s reaction to the proposed policy on Hindi impositions, he said,

“There is no great opposition. They only make noise for political reasons. Assam, Maharashtra, Odisha are also non-Hindi speaking states but they don’t oppose Hindi. The 2nd argument is Bengal is the land of Vidyasagar, Vivekananda, Rabindranath and Netaji so why should Bengalis learn Hindi.”

Tathagata Roy, Governor, Meghalaya

How Have People Reacted?

Roy’s tweets faced a huge backlash from many people on Twitter who remarked that young people from other states also worked in similar professions — not because they didn't know Hindi — but due to the lack of opportunities.

However, there were a few who also agreed with the leader and tweeted in his support.

In retaliation to those annoyed with his tweets, Roy has suggested, ‘Apply Burnol’, a popular idiom on social media, reported NDTV.

(With Inputs from NDTV)