Taking a swipe at the TMC government for selecting August 5 for complete lockdown in West Bengal when 'bhoomi pujan' (groundbreaking rituals) is scheduled in Ayodhya for the construction of the Ram temple, the state BJP on Monday demanded that the TMC ministry shift the date like it did for the Eid festival. Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said the decision for the lockdown on August 5 reflects the ruling party's strategy to turn "West Bengal into Bangladesh".
He sought change in the date like it was done keeping in mind the Eid festival on August 1, so that people of the state could join countrymen in celebrating Ram temple 'bhoomi pujan'.
"We had no problem with the state government changing dates for the lockdown due to the Eid festival. Similarly the sentiment of the Hindus over the construction of Ram Mandir should not be ignored," Ghosh said.
Meanwhile, the state government on Monday announced changes in the complete lockdown dates for the fourth time but retained August 5 as complete lockdown day. The state government had earlier selected August 2 along with eight other dates in the month for biweekly complete shutdown to break the chain of Covid-19 transmission. But the day was later removed from the list keeping in mind the festivity and the number of days for lockdown was pared to seven.
As per the new changes the lockdown will be enforced on August 20 and 21 and August 27 and 28, instead of August 16, 17, 23 and 24 as announced earlier, the government order said on Monday.
The other lockdown dates - i.e August 5, 8 and 31 are unchanged.
"A lockdown on August 5 will not allow a suitable atmosphere for those who want to celebrate the historic day of bhoomi pujan for the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. This mindset of the TMC government is a reflection of its strategy to turn West Bengal into Bangladesh," the BJP leader said.
The general secretary of state BJP, Sayantan Basu criticising the TMC decision on the lockdown said BJP will celebrate the Ayodhya bhoomi pujan in the state despite the lockdown. Had the lockdown not been in place there would have been bigger celebration and people would have come down on the roads to celebrate.
"There will be an air of celebration in the country on August 5. People have been asked to light lamps in their homes and blow conch shells in the afternoon. Only the people of West Bengal will not be able to participate because of the lockdown.
"People will not pardon Mamata Banerjee for this. TMC has insulted the legions of Ram bhakts," he said at a programme at Jhargram.
The TMC leadership termed BJP's assertions as "baseless" and urged it to refrain from communal politics amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
"Everyone should keep in mind that the Covid-19 pandemic has affected Bengal and the entire country. This is not a time to pursue communal politics. "In Bengal, we have witnessed harmony and brotherhood among all religions and cultures for decades; we should not spoil it," TMC senior leader and minister Firhad Hakim said.
The August 5 ceremony will mark the beginning of the construction of Ram temple after a decades-long title suit over the site at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh was settled by Supreme Court in November, 2019.
The BJP, which has emerged as the main challenger to TMC after winning 18 out of a total of 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal in the 2019 general election, only four less than TMC's tally of 22, has been blaming Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for appeasing Muslims. With the state assembly election due in Bengal in less than a year's time, the saffron party is not missing any opportunity to hit out at the ruling party.
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