Bengal Police to organise mass marriage of tribals: Mamata

Kolkata, March 5 The police will organise mass marriage of tribal people coming from economically backward sections in every district of West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced on Thursday.

Banerjee participated in one such mass marriage at Gajole of northern West Bengal's Malda district during the day, when 300 couples tied the knot.

The Chief Minister seemed in high spirits as she joined tribal dancers and matched steps with those jiving to folk tunes.

"We will hold another mass marriage next month in North Bengal, possibly in a tea-garden area," she said.

The Chief Minister said mass marriages will be organised every year in tribal-dominated regions.

"The police department will take the initiative in organising mass marriages for tribal people in every district," she added.

Last month, when the Vishva Hindu Parishad and other affiliates of the right wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) organised mass marriages of tribals, the Chief Minister had accuses the Hindutva outfits of attempted religious conversion. Her administration alsohwarted such bids in Malda and Alipurduar districts.

However, later she declared that her administration would arrange funds for similar mass weddings, and they would ensure nobody had to convert to another religion.

With the assembly polls a little over a year away, both Banerjee's Trinamool and the BJP are trying to woo the tribals who have a sizeable presence in a sizeable number of seats.

( With inputs from IANS )