Sandeshkhali: 'Khalistani' remark on IPS officer stirs row
Times of India | 22 February 2024
KOLKATA: Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday wondered if just about anyone sporting a turban could be called a "Khalistani" or any Muslim a "Pakistani", alluding to BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari's alleged remark about a Sikh IPS officer after he stopped a party delegation from entering Sandeshkhali in Bengal's North 24 Parganas.
"What was the officer's fault? He was only doing his duty...Time and again, they have made fun of me with different names.I don't give much importance to them. But these people are a blot on Bengal. They are bringing shame to our state," Mamata said at an event in Kolkata.
Her statement coincided with Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and Shiromani Akali Dal's Harsimrat Kaur Badal joining the chorus of protest over the alleged slur targeting IPS officer Jaspreet Singh. Sikh organisations in Kolkata took to the streets, demanding an apology from BJP and Adhikari.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said on Tuesday that BJP's "poison of hatred has blinded them".
Trinamool Congress posted on X that it was "highly condemnable for a BJP leader to call a Sikh IPS officer of Bengal a traitor".
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