A political row has erupted in West Bengal after a video, purportedly showing a street vendor selling non-vegetarian patties being thrashed near the venue of a “Gita Path” event at Brigade Parade Ground, went viral.
The incident, which took place at the event organised by the Sanatan Sanskriti Sangsad on Monday, has led to a political slugfest with the ruling Trinamool Congress and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) condemning the alleged attackers and targeting the Bharatiya Janata Party over the issue.
The vendor, identified as Sheikh Riyazul, a resident of Arambag who has been selling both vegetarian and non-vegetarian patties for 23 years, recounted a harrowing experience.
“They asked me my name. As soon as I told them, they started thrashing me. They also made me do squats and threw my food. I have been selling patties for the last 22 years,” Riyazul said.
The viral video shows a group of people, some with tilaks on their foreheads, purportedly surrounding the vendor, beating him, pulling his ears, and emptying his tin box of patties.
The incident triggered a fierce political debate, with TMC and other Opposition parties accusing the BJP and its affiliated organisations of trying to impose a “mob lynching culture” and dictate the food habits of Bengalis.
Condemning the incident, Kunal Ghosh, TMC’s state general secretary and spokesperson, said, “Don’t buy if you don’t eat non-vegetarian food. But why beat up the seller? This is their livelihood. I condemn this incident.”
“I saw many people wearing leather shoes and taking pictures holding the Gita at the brigade event. Why weren’t any action taken against them?” he added.
TMC spokesperson Arup Chakraborty framed the incident as an “attack” on Bengali culture and food habits.
“The aggressive Hindutva heroes of the BJP-RSS attacked him. They call themselves heroes. What kind of heroes are they? Someone who beats up a poor street vendor, makes him hold his ears and squat, smashes his cart, destroys all his belongings, to prove their valor,” he said.
“I don’t think this attack was only because of the vendor’s caste, religion, or anything else. Actually, this attack is an attack on Bengalis. It is a reflection of the mentality that dictates the BJP’s aggressive, Manuvadi, Brahmanical ‘One Nation, One Religion, One Language, One Flag, One Party’ mentality,” he added.
The TMC has also released an animated video targeting the BJP over the incident, and claimed that a BJP government would ban or restrict the sale and consumption of fish and meat, directly challenging the traditional food culture of West Bengal.
The CPI-M has also formally submitted a complaint regarding the incident at the Maidan police station.
Advocate Sayan Bandopadhyay of the CPI-M pointed to the legal implications.
“Whether the patties was veg or non-veg is a different question, but the way he was thrashed, the police have a provision to register a suo motu case. The way a section of people is trying to impose Uttar Pradesh’s mob lynching culture in Bengal is threatening. We have submitted a complaint, let’s see what happens,” he said.
Responding to the incident, BJP leader Debjit Sarkar questioned the appropriateness of selling non-vegetarian food near a religious gathering.
“Can Gita Path be done after eating chicken patties? During Gita Path, if a man is entering with chicken patties, it shows how reluctant they are,” Sarkar said.