CM slams ‘communal’ BJP; Mahua in SC against name display orders
Times of India | 22 July 2024
Kolkata: CM Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said the party would never join hands with the “communal forces” of BJP. She also addressed like-minded parties and invited them to join hands with her to fight “communalism”.
“As long as TMC is alive, we won’t join hands with the communal forces of BJP. This is not what we do,” Banerjee said in her Martyrs’ Day speech.“Do not complain of injustice. Instead, stand united against evil forces and communalism,” she added.
CM Banerjee’s statements coincided with TMC MP Mahua Moitra filing a PIL in the Supreme Court against UP and Uttarakhand govts’ orders asking food establishment owners along the Kanwar Yatra route to display names. Moitra has argued that this sows seeds of communal discord and affects the right to livelihood and privacy, said sources. Moitra did not respond to TOI queries.
Mayor Firhad Hakim, too, broached the issue on Sunday. “Can we ask a hawker or a shop owner to display names of their communities? Is this what the Constitution says? Bengal is safe with CM Banerjee. Now, it is a fight to save India, its values and culture,” Hakim said.
On July 18, TMC spokesperson Saket Gokhale had complained to NHRC on this issue. Gokhale had posted on X: “I’ve filed a case with NHRC against Muzaffarnagar Police for the shocking order discriminating against Muslims by asking food sellers on the Kanwar Yatra route to “display their names & names of staff members”. The logic given by SSP Muzaffarnagar is not only foolish but also shameless. He says that it is to “avoid confusion” as “yatris have dietary preferences”. A simple notification asking vendors to state whether they serve only vegetarian food or both veg & non-veg would have sufficed. What does the name of a shopkeeper or food vendor have to do with “confusion on dietary preferences”?”