Kolkata: Monks, including Kartik Maharaj, who was severely criticised by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, took to the streets on Friday to protest against the “attacks on sants and sadhus”. They walked a 3km stretch from Ramakrishna Math at Bagbazar to Swami Vivekananda’s ancestral house on Vivekananda Road barefoot.
Christened “Sant Swabhiman Yatra”, VHP along with members of Bangiya Sanyasi Samaj held the rally.
“Facts are being distorted for achieving political ends. The chief minister never accused any religious institution. She specifically spoke about a person. They are now trying to shift the focus away from him. Those who had gathered on Friday were also misinformed by BJP and RSS,” TMC’s Kunal Ghosh said.
Kartik, associated with Bharat Sevashram Sangha’s Beldanga unit in Murshidabad, said: “I am not powerful enough to decide whether any TMC agent will sit in a booth or not. I have asked the CM to prove her claims. She has hurt the sentiments of Hindus. Bengal is the land of monks. I am a monk and I work for the benefit of people,” he said. tnn