BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari.
Credit: PTI File Photo
West Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Monday blamed the Trinamool Congress-led state government for offering holiday on account of Shab-e-Barat, a festival observed by the Muslim community, but not on Makar Sankranti and Ram Navami.
In a post on X, Adhikari wrote that there’s no holiday for Makar Sankranti on January 15 and for Ram Navami on April 17. However, for Shab-e-Barat, which falls on February 25, there’s a public holiday the next day, on Monday.
The leader stated that even in Pakistan, there’s no public holiday for Shab-e-Barat. “The festival is categorised in the List of Optional Holidays. And there is no additional option to opt for a holiday on Monday as this time around Shab-e-Barat is going to be celebrated on Sunday,” Adhikari stated.
Talking to reporters, Adhikari alleged that the Trinamool is against the majority community. He was asked about the inauguration of a temple in South Bengal’s Midnapore, under an initiative taken by a local municipal body, while the Trinamool is staying away from the Ram mandir inauguration.
Adhikari added that there’s no objection to the government declaring holiday for Shab-e-Barat, on the next day, as the festival falls on a Sunday. “Offer three days instead of one,” he said and asked why a holiday was not declared on Makar Sankranti, and Ram Navami. He added that children have to go to school on the day following Saraswati Puja.
Adhikari also said that he will be distributing one lakh earthen lamps to 20,000 families in Nandigram and promised a large-scale celebration on the day Ram mandir is inaugurated.
Kunal Ghosh, Trinamool spokesperson, said that important occasions of all faiths are respected in West Bengal. He alleged that this is the misuse of religion to eliminate political deficit on behalf of the leader, and said people will not accept it. “Wherever holidays are required, they are given,” he mentioned.