December 6, 2014
Terrorists and criminals have no religion: Trinamool Chairperson at Communal Harmony Rally
Trinamool Congress observed Communal Harmony Day to mark the 22nd anniversary of the demolition of Babri Masjid today. Like every year, a rally was held near the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on Mayo Road.
Apart from senior party leaders, several religious leaders graced the occasion and sent out a message of unity.
Trinamool Chairperson was vocal against the Danga Gurus in her speech. She said we must respect Dharma Gurus and called for maintaining communal harmony in the State.
Highlights of her speech:
We must abhor the politics of division. It is against our culture.
Criminals are criminals. Terrorists are terrorists. That is their only identity.
There is a difference between governance and politics. The two must not be mixed.
We are also on social media. But we do not use it for triggering violence.
We are ready to fight politically.
Excerpts from the Chairperson’s speech:
I am thankful to all the religious leaders who are present here today. We believe in the harmony between people of all castes, creed, religion and race. From childhood we have been taught what Swami Vivekananda said – Never discriminate between people. Respect all religions.
Our party symbol represents the ideology of Nazrul and Rabindranath – Ek brinte duti kusum, Hindu Musalman. The soil of Bengal has taught me to love all religions. After General Dyer killed innocents at Jalianwala Bagh, Rabindranath returned his Knighthood. Nazrul said “Quran, Puran, Ved, Vedanta, Bible, Tripitak. Zenda Vesta, Granth Sahib, pore jao sob”. We must abhor the politics of division. It is against our culture.
Politics is about working for all equally. All Madrassas are being painted as supporters of terror. This is wrong. People with track record of communal politics, are pointing fingers at others. Chaluni kore suncher bichar? CBI is being used for political purpose. The priest at Kapilmuni Ashram at Gangasagar wanted me to name the gateway “Sarva Dhamra Sambhava”.
We were born in a Hindu family. We do need lectures in Hinduism from others. Criminals are criminals. Terrorists are terrorists. That is their only identity. If a road accident happens, will you go and find out the religious identity of victim and perpetrators? No.
When Kolkata was burning on 6th December, I was travelling across the city, attending to victims. I will not allow communal violence in Bengal. There is a difference between governance and politics. The two must not be mixed. Politics should not be about vendetta. It must be for the welfare of the people. We have not forgotten the atrocities by CPM cadre. We gave the slogan “Badlav chahiye, Badla nahin”.
What has the new government done? FDI in Railways. They have hiked excise duty on fuel. They are selling the country. We have a social responsibility. Those who have a sense of responsibility cannot commit any wrong. Nothing can be taken for granted. I will only work for the people. We are fulfilling the commitment we made to the people in our Manifesto.
Major share of our revenue is taken away by the Centre. Yet, we are working for the people. We have given recognition to Hindi, Gurmukhi, Nepali, Urdu, Al Chiki. Convent schools, Khalsa schools, Ramakrishna Mission are doing good work. Sister Nivedita’s house was encroached upon. We freed the house and turned it into a heritage site.
We gave autonomy to Ramakrishna Mission for teacher recruitment. We gave them land to set up an institution. We have set up Nazrul Tirtha at Rajarhat. We started a university named after him. Andal airport will be named after Nazrul Islam. St Xavier’s College is getting a second campus at Rajarhat. Aliah University got a new campus.
Some people try to trigger communal tension by spreading rumours. Firhad Hakim, a Muslim, is an organiser of Durga Puja. We believe in communal harmony. Netaji founded INA. His General was Shahnawaz Khan. We are also on social media. But we do not use it for triggering violence. We want welfare of people.
Koi parampara hum todne nahin denge. Zaroorat padne par desh ke ekta ke liye kurbani dene ke liye taiyar hai. Have faith on us. We want your trust. I have no family. You are my family. Amader dhomkale amra chomkai. Amader chomkale amra borshai.
You cannot scare us with the threat of jailing us. We have seen enough struggles. We are ready to fight politically. We must maintain courtesies in politics.
Let us live for unity. Let us speak for unity. Let us breathe for unity. I am the protector of people in Bengal. To harm them, you have to first harm me.
We love our motherland. We love people of all caste, creed, religion, and sect. Communal harmony is our motto. We want Dharma Gurus not Danga Gurus.
