In her first visit in nearly a decade to Furfura Sharif, a prominent Muslim pilgrimage site in Hooghly district, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday hit out at the Opposition parties for questioning her “true intentions”, saying everything was not linked to the elections.
Speaking to mediapersons after reaching Furfura Sharif, where she was welcomed by Pirzada Taha Siddiqui and other clerics, the TMC supremo said: “I am disappointed to see reports in sections of the media questioning my intentions to come here. They are asking why am I going to Furfura Sharif. Is there any vote equation? This isn’t my first visit to this place. I have been here about 15-16 times before. Why do you not ask this question when I visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi or Pushkar in Rajasthan? Why do you stay silent when I celebrate Durga Puja and Kali Puja or participate in Christmas celebrations? Why weren’t questions asked when I wished everyone during Holi?” the TMC chief said.
“The soil of Bengal is the soil of communal harmony, and our message from this platform is one of harmony, peace, and unity among all communities of the state,” she said.
The chief minister reached Furfura Sharif in Srirampur sub-division in Hooghly district around 5 pm – her third visit since becoming the chief minister in 2011. Mamata also took part in an iftar before returning to Kolkata.
She also announced the setting up of a polytechnic college and a bus stand near Furfura Sharif during her hour-long visit. “Many pilgrims come here across the year. So, they need a bus stand here,” the CM said.
Pirzada Taha Siddiqui, however, said he wished the CM all the best. “I will not make any demands today. I will say that to the chief minister personally. I am only wishing all the best to her,” the senior cleric said.
Furfura Sharif, the second-most venerated Muslim shrine in India after Ajmer Sharif, has followers in Assam, West Bengal, Tripura and even Bangladesh.
Ahead of her visit, the opposition parties accused the chief minister of minority appeasement ahead of the Assembly elections due next year.
Leader of Opposition and BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari said, “She (Mamata Banerjee) went to Furfura before the 2016 Assembly elections, and is going now. In the meantime, she forgot about Furfura. Now, her position is shaky, and she is again remembering Muslims and therefore rushed to Furfura Sharif.”
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, “She (Mamata Banerjee) wants to please Muslims. That is why she went to Furfura. She always does religion politics and never talks about development and employment.”
ISF MLA from Bhanghar Naushad Siddiqui, who had met the CM last week over development funds, also called the visit “purely political”.
“As many leaders go to temples for furthering their political agenda, similarly, Mamata Banerjee is going to Furfura,” Naushad, who is the nephew of Pirzada Taha Siddiqui, said.
Naushad’s brother Abbas Siddiqui is another Furfura shrine cleric who launched the Indian Secular Front (ISF) party in the run-up to the 2021 Assembly elections and joined an alliance with the Congress and Left Front.