West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee shared a video on Tuesday, showing a Sikh police officer breaking into an argument with a few people after he was called a “Khalistani”. The Chief Minister alleged in a post on X, “As per the BJP4, every person wearing a turban is a Khalistani.”
She said, “I VEHEMENTLY CONDEMN this audacious attempt to undermine the reputation of our SIKH BROTHERS & SISTERS, revered for their SACRIFICES and UNWAVERING DETERMINATION to our nation.”
In the video, a police officer could be heard lashing out at a group for allegedly calling him a “Khalistani” — a person who supports the Khalistan movement that seeks to establish an independent state for Sikhs in India.
The police officer asked the group if they called him Khalistani because he was wearing a turban. He said, “Why did you call me Khalistani, is it because I am wearing a turban? Did anyone speak about your religion, why did you speak on mine…Nobody is making any comments on religion, you are making…you are calling one police officer, who has worn a turban, a Khalistani because he is doing his duty…,” the police officer said.
He also vowed to take action over the incident.
Mamata Banerjee’s statement came amid the row over the Sandeshkhali incident and farmers’ protest.
Earlier in the day, Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari reached Sandeshkhali in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district on Tuesday afternoon after getting permission from the Calcutta High Court. The village recently witnessed a series of protests after local women accused Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of “land-grab and sexually assaulting” them under coercion.
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The BJP leaders were welcomed by locals, including women, after they reached Sandeshkhali by crossing the Kalindi River on a boat from Dhamakhali. Adhikari, along with another BJP MLA Sankar Ghosh, spoke to the locals, including women, who narrated their “spine-chilling” experiences endured at the hands of local TMC leaders, including absconding Shahjahan Sheikh.
“The experiences narrated by the locals are spine-chilling. Their lands have been usurped, and women exploited… and everything happened with the help of the police and the administration. The situation is completely horrific and is a clear example of anarchy prevailing in the area,” he was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.
Meanwhile, Mamata Banerjee said on Tuesday, “We stand firm in protecting Bengal’s social harmony and will take stern lawful measures to prevent any attempts to disrupt it.”
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Published: 20 Feb 2024, 03:48 PM IST