New Delhi: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has said that West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee stands as ‘a shield’ for the language and the people of Bengal.
Stalin, who is a fellow INDIA Bloc leader, has thrown his weight behind Banjerjee amid the ongoing row between Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Centre, The Indian Express reported.
His remarks came after a letter from the Delhi Police described Bangla as ‘Bangladeshi language’.
Calling out the reference, Stalin said that is an insult to the language in which the national anthem is written.
Taking to social media platform X, Stalin said: ‘Hon’ble @MamataOfficial Didi stands as a shield for the language and people of West Bengal. She will not let this attack pass without a fitting response’.
Saying that the reference was not ‘inadvertent errors or slips,’ Stalin said they reveal that ‘the dark mindset of a regime that consistently undermines diversity and weaponises identity’.
Meanwhile, the TMC on Sunday calling it a move against the identity of a constitutionally recognized language, demanded an apology.
Taking to X, the party posted: ‘Is there no limit to @BJP4India’s hatred for Bengalis? After repeatedly harassing and detaining Bengali-speaking workers across BJP-ruled states, @AmitShah’s @DelhiPolice has now crossed all lines by officially branding our mother tongue, Bangla, as the ‘Bangladeshi language’.
It all started after Inspector Amit Dutt from Lodhi Colony Police Station to Officer-in-charge of Banga Bhawan wrote a letter on July 24 seeking the service of translator to interpret documents seized from suspected Bangladeshi nationals.
The officer sought an interpreter ‘proficient in Bangladeshi national language’, triggering the controversy.