The West Bengal government has decided to observe the death anniversary of saffron ideologue and founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh—which was re-formed as Bharatiya Janata Party—Shyama Prasad Mookherjee, who died on June 23, 1953, in Kashmir. The state government has organised a function at the memorial column of the Keoratola crematorium in Kolkata where Mookherjee was cremated.
However, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will not attend the event. She has deputed two of her ministers—Municipal Affairs Minister Firhad Hakim and Power minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay—for the function.
The inclusion of Hakim, who is a staunch critic of the BJP and known to be one of the hardliners who advised the chief minister to have a pro-Muslim policy, has raised several eyebrows.
Chatterjee, on the other hand, is known to be an admirer of Mookerjee. When Mookerjee's statue, erected near the crematorium was damaged by left wing activists in protest against pulling down Lenin's statue in Tripura, Chatterjee had said, “It was wrong to tag Shyama Prasad Mookherjee as fundamentalist,” and pointed out that Mookherjee had introduced Islamic History in the curriculum of Calcutta University when he was the vice chancellor of the varsity.
Interestingly, Banerjee herself was a student in the Islamic History department of Calcutta University.
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However, her decision to celebrate the death anniversary of Mookherjee has surprised many.
"Obviously she would like to send out a message. Time has come for her to shed the image of a pro-Muslim leader. Even Rahul Gandhi is doing that," said Prabir Chakraborty, a political science professor in Kolkata.
The chief minister has also decided to construct 50 lakh flats for poor and lower middle class people who earn between Rs 15,000 to 30,000 per month.
"One BHK flat would cost Rs 7.5 lakh while two BHK flat would cost Rs 15 lakh. West Bengal government would give free land for the project. A private organisation would build the flats," said an officer of the state government.
Obviously, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party are not the only ones with 2019 in mind.