Mamata Banerjee sets tone for Martyrs’ Day rally tomorrow, to stress on ‘Bengali harassment’ issue

Kolkata, July 20 West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Sunday, set the tone for Trinamool Congress’s annual Martyrs’ Day rally slated for Monday and made it clear that the issue of alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-ruled states would be the main focus of her address at the rally.

The Chief Minister visited the venue of the rally on Sunday, and there, while speaking to the media persons, she gave some hints on the subjects that she would touch upon during her address at the rally on Monday.

"It is not right to brand people as thieves and dacoits. Bengali-speaking people are being targeted. We respect all languages and we respect people of all states. But it is not right to put Bengali-speaking people in jail. I will speak in detail about this tomorrow," said the Chief Minister.

At the same time, she indirectly expressed her ire over the development of a single-judge bench of Calcutta High Court imposing restrictions last week on the Martyrs’ Day rally, organised every year to commemorate the 13 people who were killed during a demonstration by the West Bengal Youth Congress, then led by Mamata Banerjee, on July 21, 1993.

Without taking anyone's name, the Chief Minister also took a dig at the people who moved the Calcutta High Court to stop her party from holding the programme at that venue.

"We hold our programme here because 13 people died at this place in 1993. Blood was spilt at this very place. That is why we organise our Martyrs’ Day event here. But some people have a problem if we hold the event here. But when any ‘March to Nabanna (state secretariat)’ is organised without police permission, then they do not have any problem," the Chief Minister said.

Last week, the single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh not only discussed the Martyrs’ Day rally this year, but also advised Trinamool Congress leadership to consider an alternative venue for the programme from next year.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister also indirectly attacked the BJP for organising a parallel programme at Siliguri in North Bengal on Monday to counter the Trinamool Congress’s Martyrs’ Day rally. "We do not organise parallel programmes when they organise their programme attended by their central leaders," the Chief Minister added.

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