After West Bengal Mamata Banerjee advised TMC leaders to “hiss” at “ugly, slanderous” people trying to “bite” them, party leaders are threatening people. The latest is Atish Sarkar, husband of a TMC councillor at Habra, who lashed out at protestors on Sunday.
“I will make a distorted picture of your mother and sister and hang it on the door of your house. You will not be able to leave your house,” he said, referring to people making social media posts to criticise the state administration in the wake of the RG Kar hospital rape and murder case.
Earlier on Sunday, TMC Bankura MP Arup Chakraborty said that once party workers take a stand and “hiss”, those who are protesting against the rape and murder of a junior doctor at RG Kar Hospital and “misleading people”, will “flee like dogs”.
“Awaken your conscience. Save (West) Bengal. Stand with Mamata Banerjee. We are there in Delhi’s Parliament. Trinamool Congress workers will have to hiss. Friends, you hiss and they will flee like dogs, they will run like foxes,” said Chakraborty in a party meeting in Bankura.
In the same speech, he said, “We wanted change, not revenge, after coming to power in 2011. But they have crossed all limits. They are misleading the people and making them say that people will not accept Kanyashree or Durga Puja grants (in protest against the rape and murder case). If they have guts, they should take out a rally and show how many people are with them.”
He called on women workers and student workers of the party to take a stand against protesters spreading rumours about the case.
Chief Minister Mamata Banejee said, during a public meeting on the occasion of the foundation day of Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad (the party’s student wing) on August 28, “I never wanted revenge. But now I say, you will understand well what needs to be done. I don’t want trouble. Today, you will understand what needs to be done. But the ugly, slanderous one that bites you every day, you don’t bite him but you can hiss.”
However on August 29, Banerjee took to X to say, “I also clarify that the phrase (“phonsh kara”) that I had used in my speech yesterday is a quote from Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa. The legendary saint had said that occasionally there is a need to raise one’s voice. When there are crimes and criminal offences, a voice of protest has to be raised. My speech on that point was a direct allusion to the great Ramakrishnite saying.”
On August 19, controversy arose after Chakraborty stated in a public meeting that ‘if doctors, instead of treating patients and in the garb of protests, roam about with their boyfriends or go home and the patients die, there will be public outrage. If hospitals get gheraoed, they should not come to us to save them.”
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