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Political campaigns get holidays, not patriots: Mamata Banerjee on Netaji’s birthday
The West Bengal CM targeted the BJP government at the Centre and said that she has been trying to get January 23 be declared as a national holiday for 20 years
There can be a national holiday in India for a political campaign but not for those who made sacrifices for the nation, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said in Kolkata on Tuesday while paying homage to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his 127th birth anniversary.
“A holiday can be given for a political campaign, but not for those who sacrificed their lives for the nation. Saare Jahan Se Achha Hindustan Hamara,” Banerjee said in her speech at the official state government event, quoting lines from the famous patriotic song composed by Muhammad Iqbal during the freedom struggle. Members of Bose’s family were also present on the dais.
“For 20 years, I have been trying to get January 23 declared as a national holiday. I have failed. I apologise to all of you,” Banerjee said.
Targeting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre, the Trinamool Congress chief said, “The country is so unfortunate that we still don’t know what happened to the man who disappeared during his pursuit to show us the right path. It is a matter of shame. After we (TMC) came to power, we released 64 classified files that were lying in the (British era) archives. Before the BJP came to power, it promised to unravel the mystery (behind Bose’s disappearance). But they forgot Netaji after their job was done.”
“They dissolved the Planning Commission. Today there is no planning for the nation. All the planning goes into killings, brutality, hate politics and divide-and-rule policy. They formed the Niti Aayog. It neither has niti (policy) nor aayog (commission). It is a wax doll with no power,” Banerjee said.
West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar, who had appealed to the chief minister to declare a holiday for the Ram temple consecration on Monday, said, “The Centre will decide how January 23 should be observed. But Netaji believed in action. I don’t think he would have asked for a holiday.”
