Mamata bats for harmony, says not just mother tongue, respect other languages
Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday chose the platform of International Mother Language Day celebration to send across a message that one should to show respect to all languages like he/she does to the mother tongue but stayed away from referring to ongoing turmoil in Bangladesh, a country that celebrates the day with much grandeur. She also reminded that “Language Day belongs to everyone; language cannot be anyone’s property” and wished to “let there be unity, peace and harmony on this day”.
During her speech at the annual event at Deshapriya Park, Banerjee in an apparent reference to Bangladesh said: “We should not utter any words in any other country. We should speak about our country. The soil of Bengal is golden. Bengali is not just spoken by us, it is spoken worldwide. In Asia, Bengali is the second largest spoken language.” While one of the dignitaries at the programme spoke about the prevailing situation in Bangladesh, Banerjee stayed away from it.
Ever since a crisis triggered in Bangladesh, Chief Minister Banerjee never uttered any words on the Bangladesh issue and unequivocally stated that her government would support the Centre in whatever decision it takes when it comes to international issues. Many have, however, viewed that the International Mother Language Day celebration in Bangladesh lacked its grandeur this year compared to that of the previous years. Even the Chief Adviser of the interim government in Bangladesh Muhammad Yunus reportedly did not visit the martyrs’ monument in Dhaka. Infact, even on the Indo-Bangladesh border, the day was not celebrated. But the High Commission for the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, New Delhi held an event in the national capital.
Bengal Chief Minister always “judiciously” abstained from making any statements as far the affairs of the neighbouring country is concerned. She reminded people attending the event at Deshapriya Park that although Bengali is the mother tongue of the majority of people in Bengal, the state government has recognised several other languages like Kuruk, Sadri, Alchiki, Kamtapuri, Rajbanshi and Kurmali among other languages. “Even though it was late, Bengali received recognition as a classical language,” she said.
During the event prayers were offered to the late singer Pratul Mukhopadhyay.
Vivek Kumar, additional chief secretary for Land and Land Reforms department, sang Mukhopadhyay’s “Aami Banglar Gaan Gaai” before poet Joy Goswami read out a poem called ‘Bangla’ by the late poet Bhaskar Chakraborty.
CM became emotional while remembering Mukhopadhyay. “I met him 48 hours before his death. He didn’t respond for two days. I went to see him and tried to speak to him. He opened his eyes and they were filled with tears. I told him, ‘Pratulda, you have to sing, you have to live’. Hearing my voice, his blood pressure dropped. I pressed his fingers and spoke to him softly. He gestured that he couldn’t sing anymore. I had a faint hope that he might recover this time, too. Wherever he is, I feel he is listening to everyone here. He will always have a place in our heart,” Banerjee said.
