THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Ranchi, March 8: Leaders and workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party Scheduled Tribes (ST) Morcha on Sunday staged protests across Jharkhand, burning effigies of Mamata Banerjee over the alleged insult to Droupadi Murmu during her recent visit to West Bengal.
The protests were organised in several districts of the state, with BJP leaders accusing the All India Trinamool Congress government of disrespecting the President and hurting the sentiments of the tribal community.
Effigy burning protest in Ranchi
In Ranchi, the BJP Ranchi Metropolitan ST Morcha organised an effigy-burning demonstration at Firayalal Chowk, where party workers raised slogans against the West Bengal government.
Addressing the gathering, Sameer Oraon described the alleged treatment of the President as “extremely shameful and unfortunate”.
He said the incident was not only an insult to the highest constitutional office in the country but also deeply hurt the sentiments of the tribal community, as President Murmu herself belongs to a tribal background.
Allegations over protocol lapse
Oraon said President Murmu had travelled to Phansidewa in Siliguri to attend the 9th International Santhal Conference, but despite established protocol, neither the Chief Minister nor any minister from the West Bengal government was present to receive her.
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He also alleged that the venue selected for the programme was too small, preventing a large number of people from attending the event, which reportedly led to the President expressing displeasure.
“The way the President of the country was treated is extremely unfortunate. It reflects the mindset of the state government, which repeatedly disregards constitutional dignity and the honour of tribal communities,” Oraon said.
BJP demands explanation from TMC government
The BJP leader said the party would not tolerate any disrespect to the President and demanded an explanation and apology from the West Bengal government.
He added that the protests organised across districts were meant to highlight what the party described as an insult to the constitutional office of the President.
Party workers join protest
Several BJP leaders and workers participated in the protest demonstration, including Aarti Kujur, Ashok Baraik, Ravi Munda, Balram Singh, Jitendra Verma, Raju Singh, Sanjay Toppo, Ajit Kachhap, Naresh Pahan, Sanjeev Chaudhary, Balsay Mahato, Gundhra Oraon, Anand Verma, Ashok Mishra, Randhir Singh, Kundan Singh, Subhash Agarwal, Ram Lagan Ram and Shankar Karmali, along with hundreds of party activists.
