TMC – BJP Fight over Tagore Legacy: Each Accused the Other for “Insulting” the Nobel Laureate

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Dec 24: The absence of the West Bengal chief minister Mamata Bannerjee at the centenary celebrations of the Vishwa Bharati University, Shantiniketan, addressed by the prime minister Narendra Modi became the focal point of a verbal duel between the ruling Trinamool Congress and the BJP.

The BJP claimed that Bannerjee had “insulted” the legacy of the Nobel Laureate poet Rabindranath Tagore, who established the University, by abstaining from the celebrations while the TMC hit back stating the prime minister had lowered the image of Bengal by refusing to name the Calcutta University during his address amidst the plethora of educational institutions he named to have contributed in India’s freedom movement.

The TMC also claimed that though Vishwa Bharati had been named a central university, as a protocol and courtesy the chief minister was always invited and this time too should had been invited to grace the occasion but Bannerjee was not issued any such invitation.

To the BJP’s claim that the Bannerjee was issued an invitation signed by the vice-chancellor of the University Bidyut Chakraborty on December 4, the TMC denied having received any such invitation. Bannerjee herself told the media persons that she did not receive any invitation from any quarter to attend the university’s centenary celebrations.

The charges and counter-charges began shortly after Modi completed his address describing Vishwa-Bharati’s hundred years of journey to be very special and a matter of pride for every Indian and calling Tagore’s vision to be the essence of a “Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India). The TMC hit out at Modi saying the PM mentioned all universities in the country for their contribution to the freedom movement but left out Calcutta University, the nation’s first university set up in 1857 and to which all colleges were affiliated to at that time.

Accusing Modi and the BJP of showing Bengal and Bengalis in poor light, the TMC also alleged that chief minister Mamata Banerjee was not even invited to the programme.

Minister Bratya Basu and TMC’s leader in the Rajya Sabha, Derek O’Brien, held a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Kolkata.

When it was pointed out that the Vishwa Bharati authorities had claimed that an invitation was sent on Wednesday night, Basu said, “Is that how a chief minister is invited?”

“I could not understand why there were repeated references to Gujarat when he (Modi) was talking about Tagore. And, some of the things he said were factually wrong. For example, Satyendranath Tagore was not the poet’s eldest brother. Also, it was not from Gujarati women alone that Satyendranath’s wife Gyanadanandini Devi learnt to wear the traditional saree in a different way. She was inspired by Parsi women as well but the Prime Minister will not name Parsees for the same reason that stops him from mentioning Dalits,” said Basu.

Reading out from Tagore’s writings against communal violence, Basu said, “The migratory politicians should have a deep understanding of Tagore and his philosophy before talking about him.”

Addressing a press conference in the afternoon, Mamata Banerjee asked,  “Who invited me and when? I did not receive any invitation or phone call as far as the centenary celebration is concerned.”

She sounded some veiled warning to the vice-chancellor without taking names. She also called upon the people to preserve the vision and philosophy of Tagore. “Vishwa Bharati University turns 100. This temple of learning was Rabindranath Tagore’s greatest experiment on creating the ideal human being. We must preserve the vision and philosophy of this great visionary,” tweeted CM Banerjee.

The BJP Bengal unit and its leaders targeted Banerjee on Twitter, alleging that she insulted the legacy of Tagore by not attending the ceremony. The party even circulated the image of an invitation letter dated December 4, signed by the vice-chancellor.

“Dirty politics everywhere, @MamataOfficial? She has insulted the legacy of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, by not attending the Vishwa-Bharati celebrations even after receiving the invitation! She is slowly strangulating everything “Sonar Bangla” stood for!” tweeted the Bengal BJP.

Amit Malviya, head of the BJP’s national information technology cell, posted an image of the December 4 letter.

“Vishwa Bharati had sent invite to WB CM on 4 Dec 2020. But for Pishi, politics is more important than the legacy of Gurudev Tagore! Never ever has a CM insulted Tagore’s Vishwa-Bharati like this! Pishi (Mamata) is impersonation of narrow mindedness that is pushing Bengal to utter darkness!” tweeted Malviya.

Asked about the letter, minister Bratya Basu said, “You have the letter but was it sent and received by the government? Do you have a copy which is stamped ‘received’? The vice-chancellor wrote a letter to himself thinking he is the chief minister and received it too.”

Modi in his address said its founder and Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s vision was the essence of “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” or a self-reliant India. The PM spoke at length on the pivotal role Vishwa-Bharati played in India’s freedom movement and how it spread the message of universal brotherhood encapsulated in Tagore’s philosophy and works.

“Gurudev’s vision for Vishwa-Bharati is the essence of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Atmanirbhar Bharat is the path to India’s development for the development of the world. It’s a campaign for India’s empowerment and prosperity, and through it, the prosperity of the word,” he told the gathering through video conferencing from New Delhi.

From the “Vedas to Vivekananda”, the PM continued, Tagore’s thoughts reflected the collective thought of India, which was never introverted or exclusive.

Vishwa-Bharati was declared a Central University and an Institution of National Importance by an Act of Parliament in 1951. Tagore founded it in 1921.

Praising the institution for its remarkable achievements in numerous fields ranging from art and literature to science and innovation, Modi urged the students to reach out to the artisans in the region and explore ways to find national and international markets for their produce.

“That will make them self-reliant. Atmanirbhar Bharat is the initiative for India’s prosperity which will aid in global prosperity,” said Modi.