Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress has demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for wrongly saying that West Bengal freedom fighter Matangini Hazra was from Assam.
West Bengal TMC general secretary Kunal Ghosh said that PM Modi has little knowledge of history and was only reading a written text in “dramatic style”.
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TMC spokesperson tweeted, “BJP 4 Matangini Hazra from Assam? You are mad? You don’t know history. You have no emotion. You just read a written speech (that too by others) with drama.”
Attaching a purported video clip of the speech, Kunal Ghosh said, “It is an insult to Bengal. You should apologise. Hope your LOP from East Midnapore will also condemn such mistake.”
The TMC leader has asked Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari to respond to the PM’s speech as the Nandigram MLA often talked about Medinipur’s contribution to the freedom struggle, from where Matangini Hazra was honoured.
TMC also attacked PM Modi in a tweet on its official handle, “Matangini Hazra is a freedom fighter from Bengal, Mr. Narendra Modi!”
The party wrote, “With so little respect for our glorious history, you have once again insulted #Bengal. Is BJP committed to erasing our history? Making fun of it on its own volition? Shame on you. “
Reacting to the issue raised by the TMC, the BJP defended the Prime Minister by saying that the ruling party was unnecessarily creating controversy over the mess made during the Independence Day speech. The saffron party claimed that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also made several mistakes in her speeches in the past.
Reacting to the controversy, state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said, “It was a small mistake on the part of the Prime Minister and TMC is deliberately highlighting it, while trying to ignore other parts of his speech.” , where he spoke about several projects initiated by the Centre.” news agency PTI reported.
BJP state vice-president Jai Prakash Majumdar said, “It was a slip of the tongue. What about the series of mistakes made by our freedom fighters and the chief minister on history? Did he ever apologize for those mistakes?”
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Pradip Bhattacharya said that it was a grave mistake by the Prime Minister to show his ignorance about the history of Bengal and its contribution to the freedom struggle.
State Left Front president Biman Bose also attacked PM Modi over his speech and said: “Such things happen if a person who grew up with the teachings of the RSS doesn’t care to read or find out and he Depends on the text prepared by your office. Untested.”
Born in 1869, Matangini Hazra lived in Tamluk in present-day Purba Medinipur district. She was shot dead by the British Indian Police in 1942 while she was leading a procession as part of the Quit India movement popularized by Mahatma Gandhi.
His death sparked widespread condemnation for the British, fueling resolve against the colonists amid the freedom struggle.
Matangini Hazra is a well-known figure throughout West Bengal and a statue of her is also installed in the Maidan area in the heart of Kolkata.
His name was taken by both TMC and BJP during high-voltage campaigning in Purba and Paschim Medinipur districts during the assembly elections this year.
(with agency input)
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