During the commemoration event of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s 125th birth anniversary at Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee snapped at the crowd, after she was greeted with ‘Jai Shree Ram’ chants when called to speak on stage.
“I think the government’s program should have dignity. This is a government programme and not an event of one political party. It doesn’t suit you to insult someone after inviting them. As a protest, I won’t speak anything.”Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal Chief Minister
She did not give a speech, but said “Jai Hind, Jai Bangla” and took her seat next to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in Kolkata for the same event.
Earlier in the day, intensifying the battle for Bengal, Banerjee had led a mega rally from Shyam Bazaar to Red Road in the city and paid a surprise visit to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's ancestral residence at Elgin Road, where she criticised the Centre's decision to announce 23 January as ‘Parakram Diwas’.
Tweeting a video of the event, TMC MP Derek O’Brien wrote, “ You can’t teach ‘dignity’. Nor can you teach lumpens to be dignified.”
TMC MP Mahua Moitra said, “This government has completely violated all sanctity of a multi-faith democracy. In an official event, you can't have religion chants as long as this is a secular democracy. And it is only lumpen, uneducated people like in BJP who can defend this kind of nonsense.”
Reacting to her outburst, Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij claimed in a tweet, "Jai Shri Ram to #MamtaBanerjee is like red rag to a bull that is why she stopped her speech at Victoria Memorial today."
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