The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) on Thursday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of insulting Bengal’s cultural identity and using Durga Puja for political branding.
In a statement, the party said that even Gods and Goddesses are not spared from the BJP’s “vulgar politics.”
The release alleged that BJP leaders insult Maa Durga, mock sacred traditions, and then attempt to hijack Durga Puja for their own agenda.
According to the AITC, Durga Puja organisers in Delhi are being instructed by chief minister Rekha Gupta to plaster Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s face across pandals and dedicate a day to him.
“Is this devotion to Maa Durga or devotion to their ‘non-biological’ Prime Minister?” the statement asked.
The Aam Aadmi Party's Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj on Tuesday accused the BJP of "politicising faith" by directing Durga Puja organisers to place Prime Minister Narendra Modi's photo beside Goddess Durga's idol.
Bharadwaj alleged that Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta's "diktat" has angered the Bengali community, asserting that their faith "cannot be bought with 1,200 units of free electricity".
Trinamool Congress also accused BJP leaders of showing disregard for Bengali heritage. At a recent event presided over by former state BJP President and union minister Sukanta Majumdar, portraits of literary greats Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay were allegedly placed on the floor.
Calling it an act of deliberate insult, the AITC described it as “the true face of BJP, the face of a party that is Bangla-birodhi to its core.”
The statement added that Bengal’s BJP leaders were so desperate to please their masters in Delhi that they have abandoned their Bengali roots.
“No Modi-Shah photo-op or token cultural stunt can hide the fact that they scorn our language, mock our icons, and trample on our identity,” the AITC said.