Supriyo: Mamata's reaction to Jai Shri Ram part of appeasement politics

Babul Supriyo

Kolkata: Union Minister Babul Supriyo on Tuesday said that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's angry reactions to BJP's 'Jai Shri Ram' chant were a part of her appeasement politics.

"It is the people's choice to utter 'Jai Shri Ram', and at times slogans do become phrases of protest. Had those very people uttered 'Allah Hu Akbar', would Didi (sister) have chased them or would she have attended their Iftar addressing them fondly? The entire thing is a part of her appeasement politics," Supriyo told reporters.

The Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change said the intention behind the Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief's behaviour was to send a message to the state's minority communities.

"With her reactions, she is only trying to convey to the minorities that she can go to any extent for them," he said.

Days after she lost her cool on BJP activists chanting 'Jai Shri Ram', Banerjee in a social media post on Sunday accused the BJP of mixing religion with politics and using a religious slogan as its party slogan in an ill-conceived manner.

Supriyo rubbished the TMC chief's charge and said: "The BJP did not import 'Jai Shri Ram' to Bengal. The people are chanting it on their own."

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