KOLKATA: Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claim that the BJP is the only party that "protects Bengali 'ashmita' (pride)", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday slammed the BJP government in Assam for "threatening" Bengali-speaking people in the northeastern state, who want to "peacefully coexist, respecting all languages and religions."
Refuting the allegation, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accused Banerjee of "encouraging illegal encroachment" by a particular community and "appeasing" the religious community for vote banks.
Taking to X on Saturday, Banerjee said, "The second most spoken language in the country, Bangla, is also the second most spoken language of Assam. To threaten citizens, who want to coexist peacefully respecting all languages and religions, with persecution for upholding their own mother tongue is discriminatory and unconstitutional."
Accusing the BJP of employing "divisive agenda" in Assam, Banerjee said the BJP has "crossed all limits" and the people will fight back.
She added, "I stand with every fearless citizen who is fighting for the dignity of their language and identity, and their democratic rights."
Within 23 minutes of Banerjee’s post, Sarma also took to X to counter Banerjee: "While we are acting decisively to preserve Assam’s identity, you, Didi, have compromised Bengal’s future—encouraging illegal encroachment by a particular community, appeasing one religious community for vote banks, and remaining silent as border infiltration eats away at national integrity—all just to stay in power."
Justifying the Assam government’s action, he claimed that it is part of "resisting" the ongoing "unchecked Muslim infiltration" from across the border.
"Didi, let me remind you— In Assam, we are not fighting our own people. We are fearlessly resisting the ongoing, unchecked Muslim infiltration from across the border, which has already caused an alarming demographic shift. In several districts, Hindus are now on the verge of becoming a minority in their own land," he said.
Claiming that it is not a political narrative, but a reality, he mentioned that even the Supreme Court termed such infiltration as external aggression.
"And yet, when we rise to defend our land, culture, and identity, you choose to politicize it. We do not divide people by language or religion. Assamese, Bangla, Bodo, Hindi—all languages and communities have coexisted here. But no civilisation can survive if it refuses to protect its borders and its cultural foundation," the post added.
Biswa Sarma also affirmed that Assam would continue to fight to preserve its heritage, its dignity, and its people—with courage and constitutional clarity.
Later, in a post on X, the Trinamool Congress alleged that the Assam Government has ordered the demolition of a centuries-old Kali temple in Dhubri.
Taunting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for beginning his speech with "Jai Maa Kali," and "Jai Maa Durga" chants at a public rally in Durgapur, West Bengal on Friday, the Trinamool Congress said, "There is nothing real or sacrosanct about @BJP4India. For them, even devotion is PERFORMATIVE. They flaunt images of Maa Kali as backdrops for their political rallies. @narendramodi chants "Joy Maa Kali" from public stages for show. Yet the same BJP Govt. in Assam has ordered the demolition of a centuries-old Kali temple in Dhubri to make way for a riverine port near the Dhubri-Phulbari bridge."
"Can you really expect better from a party that misspells "মা দুর্গা" (Maa Durga) in the official invitation for the Prachar Mantri's event? They don’t revere our deities, they EXPLOIT them," the post added.
