Mamata explains why another 'Bhasha Andolon' is necessary to prevent attack on Bengali language

Kolkata, July 24 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Thursday afternoon, explained why another “Bhasha Andolon" (Language Movement) was necessary to prevent the alleged attacks on Bengali-speaking people selectively in BJP-ruled states and that too just allegedly because of the language they speak.

“Language, civilization, and culture are the backbone of society. Just as “mother” is the word that a child first learns to utter, similarly we learnt to speak in our mother language. But these days, Bengali as a language is facing a sort of ‘language terror’. The Bengali-speaking people are being harassed and tortured. So we need another ‘Bhasa Andolon’ to awaken the society. If necessary, there will be another ‘Bhasa Andolon’. But we have to protect the respect of our mother language,” the Chief Minister said while addressing a programme to observe the death anniversary of iconic Bengali “matinee-idol” actor Late Uttam Kumar.

Political observers feel that the Chief Minister had deliberately chosen the venue for airing her views on the Bengali issue considering the continuing Bengali nostalgia and euphoria over Late Uttar Kumar.

Her explanation on his count comes amid scathing criticism for drawing parallel of her contention on the issue with “Bhasha Andolon” since historically, “Bhasha Andolan” was a political movement in what was then East Pakistan, advocating for the recognition of the Bengali language as an official language of the country, which ultimately led to the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent nation after erstwhile East Pakistan was liberated from Pakistan in 1971.

Earlier this week, the Chief Minister also announced that Trinamool Congress would start weekend protest programs from July 27 against alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-ruled states.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Chief Minister also stated on the wall of her official X handle, where she claimed that she had been increasingly receiving reports of detentions and atrocities on Bengali-speaking people from different districts of West Bengal in Gurugram, Haryana.

“The West Bengal Police are receiving these reports from Haryana police in the name of requests for identity searches. Have been separately and increasingly receiving reports from other States like Rajasthan, etc., about illegal 'pushbacks' of West Bengal citizens with all proper documents to Bangladesh directly!! Our officers have received copies of their appropriate documents! There are tortures and tortures on hapless poor Bengali workers from West Bengal in these states," her statement read.

There, she also claimed that she was shocked to see such terrible atrocities of BJP-ruled state governments on Bengalis in India.

“What do you want to prove? This is atrocious and terrible. We are not going to tolerate this. Stop this linguistic terror. Whether this language-terror will stop or not?” the Chief Minister questioned.

--IANS

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