Vituperation. The word might seem to be uncanny to many but if its scriptural worth is ascertained at the very outset it might help one to get hold of the entire context. What does this word signify in particular? In short, the words means abusive or venomous language used to express blame or censure or bitter deep-seated ill will – the entire state of Bengal is under the mighty grip of the same and awaiting to be in flames soon. Well, there has never been any end to the legacy of violence of this state ever. It has been going on without fail ever since its inception on June 20, 1947 and now, with each day it passes the torment is escalating steadily. While Hindus of assorted villages in the Diamond Harbor constituency are braving lethal onslaughts from their Muslim neighbors, backed by the Trinamool Congress, not only Kolkata but the remotest corners of the state as well are aghast with the desecration of Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar’s bust. Not only in the streets but also even in households people are enraged to find out the culprits. Desecration of one of such greatest sons of Bengal as well as the entire India and also one of the towering figures of the Bengal Renaissance of the 19 th century is akin to blasphemy to Bengalis, if not more.
Is it necessary to have a few words on Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidaysagar? If truth be told, such erudition is found rarely even in a millennium even. When the British Empire was at zenith of its success terming (then) India as the brightest jewel on the British crown and also expanding its tentacles across the globe, this short-stature Hindu Brahmin pundit had the courage to stand up to mightiest odds even. Extremely proud of his ancient legacy and also attire, he had never had any qualms in entering the Viceregal Palace in dhuti-chadar dress. His scholarship coupled with a rare sense of humanity had earned the respect of all. Even his worst foes remained reverential to him. Regarded as one of the finest contributions of the Bengal Renaissance he has left behind an indefinable, profound lineage to be revered and retained by the posterity. Sadly, simulacrum of the same saintly personality has gone to pieces thanks to a bitter political rivalry of Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Despite several shortcomings and surely as a part of political evolution, the Bharatiya Janata Party is steadily moving to the political center stage of Bengal supplanting the once-omnipotent Lefts. This is no new development as there has always been an undercurrent of the same in the state of Hindu Nationalism’s most ancient Bengal School of Thought and above all, the bastion of Dr. Shaymaprasad Mukherjee. Nevertheless, Dr. Mukherjee’s mysterious murder had stalled the fate for more than seven decades at a stretch. Finally, with the abrasion of Lefts steadily and Hindus feeling estranged in the hijab-clad Didi’s rule, BJP is in the center stage causing a deep uncertainly in several quarters, especially the academia and histrionicses where Leftist thought process is still termed as cardinal. To comprehend the fast rising political confrontations aided by violent clashes, this unknown episode has got to be considered with meticulosity.
What did happen yesterday then? The previously announced road show of Sri Amit Shah, the all-India president of Bharatiya Janata Party had already caught the attention of people and tens of thousands of enthusiasts, apart from party cadres and supporters, were perceived. The procession amid a huge fanfare did proceed with alacrity till it reached the internationally renowned University of Calcutta and also the Vidyasagar College. What happened next was nothing but a ruckus. Pebbles and stones almost rained from unknown destinations, hordes of youths within the Vidyasagar College throwing stones were witnessed all of a sudden exasperating not the BJP cadres only but the general mass also. The aggravation soon found itself to be turned into a backlash. And then, all of a sudden, few voices got heard blaming saffronites for the vandalism – vandalizing of Shri Vidyasagar’s statue. What amazes all of the presence of loads of students in the college then (certainly at odd hours), later to be identified as ardent Trinamool cadres. The Bengal Chief Minister, unlike many of her past measures, acted swiftly this time and without any compunction termed BJP as the worst iconoclast. What makes a sane mind think how can the same individual not ready to accept the Pulwama attack and India’s retributive air strike at Balakot without evidence term BJP as the lone criminal promptly? The cherished CCTV footage as the prime evidence of the entire scenario is yet to be found.
Had the stage been set already? Did Trinamool Congress in connivance with the local administration hatch a nasty ploy to maculate BJP? Was there any planning to recur the infamous Reichstag episode, claim hundreds of lives and thus stain BJP once and for all? This is no inference but mere speculations made on reports of eyewitnesses.
When all is said and done, the wheel of events does imply that the Trinamool Congress, above all its supremo Sm. Mamata Banerjee, is desperate to retain its own hegemony in any way possible. The party, in spite of its tall claims, is busy to deal with ruptures stemming out of its ever more inclination to Muslim communalism. It is being learnt that Trinamool Congress, these days, is equated to Jamaat or the party of Islamists in opposition to the Hindus.
What’s to conclude at this juncture? Well, nothing can be concluded with confidence so easily except to state that the TMC, at the behest of its all-powerful leader, is involved in a dangerous game and no stone shall be left unturned to gratify its own desire to be at the center of power. Bengal’s future is perilous and moving to sing the ancient tune of ‘Survival of the Fittest’ only.