Making a strong pitch for preserving India’s secular fabric Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday appealed to the people to maintain communal harmony and peace so that India remained united.
Ahead of hoisting the national flag from the historic Red Road in Kolkata Banerjee tweeted in favour of secular ideals saying the countries secular ideals must be preserved because “secularism is what identifies India as a nation.”
She said “we must always strive for political freedom, economic freedom, freedom of expression and preserve democratic rights,” adding “when these are not given we should organise peaceful movements to preserve these rights.”
Later in the day Banerjee unfurled the tricolour and observed a vibrant parade as Bengal joined the rest of the nation to celebrate the 73rd Independence Day.
Appealing to the people work towards protecting India’s democracy which was a “priceless asset,” Banerjee said, “Let us take an oath today, not to divide India. We must unite India. Irrespective of caste or creed, we are all one India. Secularism is what identifies and unites us as a nation.”
Even as only one IPS officer from Bengal cadre received a medal from the Centre the Chief Minister presented police medals to three senior officers — Additional Director General (South Bengal) Sanjay Singh, Director (security) Vineet Goel and Commissioner of Police (Barrackpore) Manoj Verma for their commendable service.
Earlier in a different programme the Chief Minister said the Kanyashree scheme started her government to ensure women’s empowerment had “empowered over 60 lakh girl students,” adding it entailed a “total budget of Rs 7,000 crore,” since its launch.
She asked the people not to discriminate between genders because “if we do not discriminate between girls and boys, they will keep gaining success.”
Meanwhile in an unrelated development the ruling Trinamool Congress leadership on Thursday dismissed senior leader and former Kolkata Mayor Sovan Chatterjee’s joining the BJP as a “small affair” because “he had not been working for the party for the past two years now.”
On reported appearance of TMC MLA and actor Debashree Roy at the BJP national office in Delhi senior TMC leader Partho Chatterjee said “she will be questioned about this. Without asking her about the reason of her going to the BJP office we cannot dismiss as traitor and we cannot take action against her.”
On Sovan Chatterjee’s joining the BJP another senior leader Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay said “sacrificing one’s ideology is a difficult task and those who do it are not praised. Those who go to other parties shunning their ideology are not respected even by their new friends.”