Police Stopped “Bharat Mata Utsav” Celebrations Midway In Tripura

Is worshipping ‘Bharat Mata’ is a crime in the Left-Ruled state of Tripura in the sensitive region of Northeast India? It certainly is. The action of the Tripura police bears a testimony to this.

According to Prasenjit Chakraborty, the chief organizer of this event called ‘Bharat Mata Utsav’ confirmed the police high-handedness that compelled them to close this patriotic festival midway because that disturbed the adjacent program of the Left-supported trade union.

Talking to newsbharati.com on the phone from Agartala, Chakraborty said that the program was organized to spread the message of nationalism and patriotism among the co-citizens, under the auspices of a registered non-governmental organization ‘Mission 2018’.This was the first ever such event in the history of Tripura. A day-long nationalist festival titled ‘Bharatmata Utsav’ was thus planned on August 18, 2016, in the Communist-ruled Tripura.

The organizers booked the outer premises of Rabindra Bhavan auditorium with payment of requisite fees well in advance and informed DM, District SP, Traffic SP, Fire Service and local SDM of the program.

They also sought guideline if any is there from all of them for making the program trouble free. Besides outer premises of the auditorium, the organizers also expressed willingness to use the front road for the festival on the same date.

Accordingly, a well-designed program started on 18th August at 8.30 by hoisting national flag. Thereafter, tributes offered to the 6.5-ft statue of Bharatmata and nearby statue in memory of those martyred for the motherland.

The program was going on. But at the same time, police officers were pressing upon the organizers to somehow finish the program by 4.30pm only because there is one street corner at the adjacent road by employees’ organization loyal to ruling CPIM.

‘Bharatmata Utsav’ organizers repeatedly requested police officers to make a middle way so that both the programs can easily run. They also gave several suitable options voluntarily but under tremendous political pressure police disconnected power connection forcefully two hours prior to the scheduled completion, Chakraborty said.

The audience present felt insulted at the nasty behavior of the police and started shouting slogan ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’. They openly accused those in the govt of acting like anti-national.

The organizers said it was a pre-planned conspiracy of the state govt to disturb nationalist move of the organizers and foil ‘Bharatmata Utsav’ in the middle.

The Chief Organizer of ‘Bharatmata Utsav’ Shri Prasenjit Chakraborty (who is also a journalist by profession) told media persons that the matter will be taken to the notice of the people of other states too. It's not an attack on any organization or individual, it's an attack on nationalist ideas and insult of Bharatmata, he said.

Whatever the conspiracy is carried on, the organizers promised that ‘Bharatmata Utsav’ will be organized again and again on the pious land of Tripureswari.

Courtesy: Newsbharati