Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee invoked late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s message on Friday to condemn what he called the rising tide of hate in the country.
Abhishek posted an archived video of Vajpayee's news conference in 2002 with then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi seated beside him on X and accused the “right-wing forces” of “deliberately poisoning India's climate” through attacks on Dalits, STs and minorities “under the garb of religion.”
"Right-wing forces, emboldened by power, are openly attacking Dalits, STs and minorities - through fear, lynching, threats and hate, all under the garb of religion.When those in power are the perpetrators and reward the protectors of this violence, impunity becomes policy,” he wrote.
“This is not governance; this is moral collapse. These attacks are unconstitutional, illegal and tear apart the very foundation of India -- our UNITY in DIVERSITY. Silence today is complicity. History will not forgive this,” the TMC leader added.
In 2002, when the Gujarat riots took place, Vajpayee had said: “I am trying to observe raj dharma. The king and the ruler cannot differentiate between his subjects, either on the basis of their birth, or their caste or creed.”
Analysts widely viewed the remarks as a veiled reference to Modi, underscoring expectations that, as head of the state government, he would act impartially, safeguard all communities and uphold justice for the victims.
Abhishek’s post coincided with the return of the body of Juel Sheikh, a migrant worker from West Bengal’s Murshidabad district who was lynched in Odisha’s Sambalpur, to his native village for his last rites.
While police have called it a personal dispute, a witness alleged that migrant workers were asked to prove their nationality amid suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals.
In Bengal’s political atmosphere, with Assembly elections expected to be announced early next year, Abhishek has emerged as a leading voice in the TMC’s campaign against the BJP over the alleged targeting of migrant workers from the state.
The party has accused BJP-ruled states of branding Bangla-speaking Muslim workers as “Bangladeshi infiltrators,” a charge the BJP has denied.