Kolkata, Oct 19 West Bengal’s political tensions spilled into Durga Puja, with Left parties alleging that people with allegiance to the saffron brigade were vandalising their bookstalls, sparking a row, with some BJP and RSS leaders condemning the act.
State minister Swapan Dasgupta and a senior RSS leader stressed that ideological differences cannot justify curtailing freedom of expression.
The CPI(M) has moved the Calcutta High Court, alleging that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and police attempted to remove a temporary bookstall set up by the party in Jadavpur during Durga Puja festivities.
Party leader Sujan Chakraborty on Monday said vandalism of bookstalls set up by Left parties in West Bengal during Durga Puja was an attack on democratic thought. “They are the enemies of Bengali Hindus,” the former Jadavpur MP said, alleging the BJP, which projects itself as a champion of Hindu Bengalis, was acting against their interests.
The CPI(M), SUCI and other Left parties have alleged that their bookstalls were vandalised at several places across West Bengal, from Dinhata in Cooch Behar district to Haridevpur in south Kolkata.
Asserting that the Left parties had been setting up temporary bookstalls near puja pandals since at least 1952, Chakraborty said, “The attackers are afraid of books and democratic thoughts, and that is why they vandalised the bookstalls.”
Even though vandalism of the Left’s bookstalls near puja pandals has drawn criticism from some BJP leaders, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari kept up with his attack on Communist parties, saying, “The Communists do not offer prayers, refuse to tie the sacred thread on their wrists, and do not put tilak on their foreheads. Beware of them.”
In September, he asked Durga Puja committees not to allow CPI(M) bookstalls outside pandals if they used the term ‘Sharodotsav’ (autumn festival) instead of ‘Durga Puja’ to describe the festival.
However, West Bengal Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta condemned the acts of vandalism, maintaining that he did not know who was behind the attacks or their political affiliations. “I am ashamed that such a thing has happened, and such things should not be repeated,” he told a vernacular news channel while visiting a Durga Puja pandal.
Dasgupta said the incidents could not be treated as isolated, as vandalism had been reported at more than one location. “I have an ideological difference with the Leftists, but that does not mean I will not allow them to display or sell books,” he said, stressing that freedom of thought and expression must not be curtailed.
“I have seen the Left parties’ stalls during pujas for 30 to 40 years. They do not draw a huge crowd, but they set them up,” the minister said.
Referring to criticism that the Left parties are atheists, Dasgupta said it could not be a pretext for vandalism. “Yes, they are atheists, ideologically. But so what? I cannot support hooliganism on that excuse,” he said.
“Whether it is a book by Lenin, Marx or anyone else, people who want to put forward their views should be allowed to do so. It is like TV channels. There can be 30 of them, but the remote is in your hand. Whether to read or not is your choice,” the finance minister said.
Dasgupta said the alleged incidents of vandalism have besmirched the state’s image, maintaining that he did not know who was behind the attacks or their political affiliation.
Describing himself as a staunch opponent of the Left, Dasgupta said he saw little relevance in Marxist literature today, but it remained a historical document. “If someone wants to read it, let them,” he said.
Dasgupta pointed out that the BJP was the only party to oppose the ban on Salman Rushdie’s “The Satanic Verses”. He said the BJP also protested when Taslima Nasreen was driven out of Kolkata and welcomed her back to the city when it got the chance.
“I have personally organised a programme for her. Taslima is also an atheist. I do not agree with everything she says, but I uphold her right to say it with dignity. I see attacks on books in the same light,” he said.
RSS leader Jishnu Basu too condemned the alleged acts of vandalism, saying Left parties have the right to set up bookstalls, and those demolishing them are cowards.
He asserted that the ethos of Hindutva allows others to express their opinion, and said, “Those indulging in such acts (vandalising bookstalls) are indirectly causing severe damage to an ideology.”
Maintaining that the people of West Bengal united against the pride of power in the assembly elections and defeated the Trinamool Congress to bring the BJP to power, Basu said, “It is our duty to respect people’s mandate.”
“The CPI(M), CPI and SUCI have the right to set up bookstalls, unless they are indulging in any act that may endanger a life,” said the RSS Saha Khetra Prachar Pramukh of South Bengal.
There is no masculinity in vandalising bookstalls, and those who attack these stalls are cowards, Basu said.
“If someone understands the ethos of Bharat and Hindus, they would know that it is not only about tolerance but also about accepting the ideals of others and giving them freedom to express their opinion,” the RSS leader said.
He said that those who are not allowing others to set up bookstalls or express their opinions have not understood the meaning of Bharat. “They are not fit to call themselves Hindus.
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury hit out at the BJP government in the state, asking why the state machinery was so readily mobilised against political opponents.
“Why is the State machinery so readily mobilised against political opposition and protesting youth, while serious threats to public safety remain?
“In Kolkata, 19 lives were lost at Chorbagan amid serious crowd-management failures, despite the puja’s massive publicity and government recognition. Yet at Jadavpur, police and civic authorities arrived with a bulldozer to remove Left parties’ bookstalls!” he said on X.
(PTI News)
