February 3, 2026
Ritabrata Banerjee ‘s speech during the Motion Of Thanks On The President’s Address
Mr. Deputy Chairman Sir. rising to speak on behalf of my party, the All India Trinamool Congress, on the hon. President’s Address, I wish to begin by stating that we live in the world’s largest democracy. The roots of our democratic system are extremely ancient—dating back to between the sixth and fourth centuries BCE—when there were sixteen Mahajanapadas in our country. Among these Mahajanapadas were States like Vriji and Malla, which functioned as republics, as forms of popular governance. Today, our country is the world’s largest democracy. Since the first general election of 1952, people have decided through their votes who will govern. But unfortunately, a situation has emerged where the rulers want to decide who will vote and who will not. Sir, I need your protection. Sir, if I say something wrong, you may get it expunged. But, please let me speak. I need your protection. Now Sir, the hon. President spoke about Vande Bharat trains. We were happy to hear that a Vande Bharat would run from Howrah to Kamakhya. But suddenly someone noticed that while booking tickets, only vegetarian food options were available. In our State, Sir, 98.7% of people are non-vegetarian. In Assam, where the train is headed, 78.6% of the people consume non-vegetarian food. Can the Government decide what people should eat and what they should not? On Republic Day, attempts were made to interfere with people’s food habits. In one district, an order was issued banning non-vegetarian food. Who will eat what, who will wear what, who will speak which language—these are all attempts to impose authoritarianism and fascism. Sir, the President’s Address mentions labour codes. After 1952, labour laws were enacted to protect workers’ interests. Now, 29 labour laws have been scrapped and replaced by four labour codes. Labour is not exclusively in the Union List or the State List—it is in the Concurrent List. Our State opposed this. Tamil Nadu opposed one of the codes. Yet they were forced through by brute power. Sir, the national floor-level minimum wage of ₹176 was last revised in June 2017. Who stopped the Government from revising it? No one! Yet it has not been revised. The Indian Labour Conference has not been held for 10 years. No initiative has been taken. Instead, attempts are being made to strip workers of their rights. In provident fund—both employee’s and employer’s contributions are cut. Sir, I will give an example. Though the budget made no mention of tea gardens, there are tea estates in our State under the Central Government. Andrew Yule is a Central Government company. Under it, four tea gardens—Karbala, Banarhat, Chunabhatti, and New Dooars exist. Over the last one and a half years, nearly ₹10 crore in PF dues have not been deposited for workers. This has been admitted by the Government in a written reply in this House. We are also seeing a conspiracy to destroy our State’s jute industry. Instead of jute bags, plastic and poly-jute bags are being permitted for food grain storage in FCI godowns. These things are happening continuously. Sir, I want to mention that our State Government has introduced a free social security scheme for unorganised workers—BMSSY, which isn’t otherwise available anywhere else in the country. One only needs to enrol. The Government deposits ₹55 per month. At the age of 60, unorganised workers—who otherwise have no provident fund—receive benefits up to ₹2.72 lakh from our Government. Already, 1 crore 86 lakh unorganised workers have enrolled, 37 lakh have received benefits, and ₹2,910 crore has been disbursed. This is the alternative model. The Press Council of India, a statutory quasi judicial body to safeguard the Press freedom has been without a Chairperson for the first time in the history of independent India. The term of the Fourteenth Council ended more than a year ago, but the full Fifteenth Council is yet to be formed and the post of Chairperson has not been filled, while the last Chairman’s three-year extended term ended in December, 2025. It is a very serious matter that the Government needs to address. Sir, on 26th January, during the Republic Day parade, in the presence of the hon. President and Prime Minister, the name of freedom fighter Matangini Haza, who gave her life for the nation, was mispronounced repeatedly as ‘Mantagini Hazra’. This is not a mere mistake; it is a direct assault on Bengali sentiment. Such arrogance is unforgivable. This contempt is not new. Raja Rammohan Roy, who abolished Sati, the first modern man of this country has been termed * Bankim Chandra is addressed casually as “Bankim-da.” Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar is attacked. Swami Vivekananda is called a “confused leftist.” We are now being told that Rabindranath Tagore, the poet of the world, did not win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 but for Peace. This is being said by BJP President. Scientific temper is under attack. Mythology is being passed off as history. Darwin is removed. Mendeleev’s periodic table is removed. The Mughals are removed—then with whom did Rana Pratap fight at Haldi ghati, the air? * Sir, I want to recall the words of our first Prime Minister. In the first few days after Independence, when Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was delivering the convocation address of the Allahabad University, this is what he said about a university, “A university stands for humanism, for tolerance, for reason and for the adventure of ideas and for the search of truth. It stands for the onward march of human race towards even higher objectives. If the university discharges its duties adequately, then, it is well with the people and the nation.” This was the precise quote of Pandit Nehru. Today, efforts are on to push the education system backward, against that scientific temper. Sir, the hon. President spoke of our foreign policy, amplifying the voice of the Global South. Yet where is the high moral purpose that has always marked the international outlook of our republic? India has abstained from voting on the Gaza ceasefire four times in three years in the face of an unimaginable human tragedy unfolding in the Gaza Strip. In the South Asian neighbourhood, we are seeing anti-India sentiments rising in Bangladesh and Maldives, India-quit campaign, and geo-political shifts in the outlook for countries like Sri Lanka.Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port is practically under Chinese control. The Union Government has succumbed to the economic expansionism of the U.S.A. accepting all the terms dictated upon by Trump for purchases of oil from the U.S.A. and Venezuela, instead of Russia. It has also agreed for zero per cent tariff on all imports from the U.S. This is a prime example of “Atmanirbhar Bharat” (Self-reliant India). There is no better example. Forget being a Vishwa Guru, is the Government even aware that we are no longer seen as a friend even in our neighbourhood? Foreign policy requires statesmanship and quiet diplomacy, not being guided by WhatsApp university Vice-Chancellors and their troll armies. Sir, I would like to mention some things here. However, these are not my words. Nobel laureate Indian economist Abhijit Banerjee says: “India is turning into a mystery for the world not because of complexity but because the Government’s claims no longer match ground reality. Headline GDP growth is being used as a shield to deflect attention from unemployment, poor education outcomes and widening inequality. Transparency has been weakened deliberately. When data credibility is questioned, inconvenient numbers disappear and trust in governance collapses. Media freedom is shrinking, leaving citizens without reliable scrutiny of power and investors without confidence in official narratives. Extreme polarization has replaced policy thinking, identity politics now crowds out serious discussion on jobs, education, healthcare and wages. The real question is unavoidable. If transparency, trust and consensus are destroyed, how long can growth be staged before reality catches up. A nation run on optics will always fear transparency. Development without honesty is just a performance. GDP can be managed; trust cannot. I want to quote Swami Vivekananda. In 1893, Swami Vivekananda, while speaking at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago said, “if anybody dreams of the exclusive survival of his own religion and the destruction of the others, I pity him from the bottom of my heart, and point out to him that upon the banner of every religion will soon be written, in spite of resistance: “Help and not Fight,” “Assimilation and not Destruction,” “Harmony and Peace and not Dissension.” I will again invoke Nehru, Sir. Nehru gave the very evocative example of the palimpsest. What is a palimpsest? In ancient times, before the discovery or invention of paper, the palimpsest was either a tablet of stone or a tablet of wood on which every victor would erase the past history and write his own version of history. But, in the Discovery of India, Nehru says, “India is an ancient palimpsest on which layer upon layer of thought and reverie had been inscribed, and, yet, no succeeding layer has completely hidden or erased what has been written previously.” Sitting in Bengal, many dream of capturing Bengal. We have a different meaning of Bengal. To us, Bengal means Asia’s first college—Hindu College, today’s Presidency University; Asia’s first university—Calcutta University; Asia’s first medical college— Calcutta Medical College. Bengal means the roots of rational thought. The first Nobel Prize was in Literature, not Peace. There was no “Rabindranath Sanyal”—he was Rabindranath Tagore, the poet of the world, he was not Bangladeshi. He wrote in Bengali, from Bengal, championing the idea of India. Throughout his life, across 19,000 printed pages, Tagore spoke of this vision of India. I conclude with his words: Awaken slowly, O land of golden hearts, On this sacred pilgrimage of India, On the shores of the great ocean of humanity. Here I stand, stretching out both my arms, I bow in reverence to gods and to humans alike; In generous rhythm, in supreme bliss, I offer my salutations to them. Meditative and grave stand the mountains, Rivers move like rosary beads in prayer; Across the wide plains, every day I behold This holy earth of India. On this shore of India’s vast ocean of humanity, No one knows at whose call So many streams of people arrived— From where they came, in irresistible currents, Only to lose themselves in the sea. Here came the Aryan and the non-Aryan, Here the Dravidian and the Chinese, The Scythian, the Pathan, the Mughal— All were absorbed into one single body. Even today, the doors of the West remain open; From there, all bring their offerings— They give and they receive, they merge and mingle, They do not return; they do not turn away From this shore of India’s great ocean of humanity. Bearing battle-torrents, singing songs of victory, With frenzied, thunderous cries, Breaking through deserts, mountains, and barriers, All who came— All of them dwell within me; None is distant, none is alien. In my very being, in its reverberations, Their diverse melodies continue to sound; O fierce lute, resound, resound, resound! Those who come to offer homage will come again; They will gather and stand encircling On this shore of India’s great ocean of humanity. Will unbearable suffering ever come to an end? Will a vast soul be born from this pain? On this shore of India’s great ocean of humanity, Bottom of Form No matter how hard one tries, this pluralistic idea of India will not be defeated. Joy Hind. Joy Bangla. Thank you.
