A Bengal BJP leader on Thursday attributed to Jibanananda Das a line by 18th-century poet Bharatchandra Ray Gunakor, continuing his party’s misadventures with Bengali icons.
Bishnupur MP Saumitra Khan’s gaffe came at a rally in East Burdwan where he accused the Mamata Banerjee government of failing to generate jobs and flagged Bengali parents’ aspirations of a comfortable future for their children.
“In the words of Jibanananda Das: Amar shontan jyano thakey dudhey bhaatey (Let my children live comfortably),” Khan said.
The line was from Annada Mangal, a narrative poem in three parts by Bharatchandra (1712-1760), written in 1752-53.
Jibanananda, one of Bengal’s most beloved poets, lived between 1899 and 1954.
A Calcutta-based historian said: “Today, with so much information available through one’s smart phone, how do these mistakes keep getting made?”
BJP sources admitted in private this was yet another “regrettable and avoidable” faux pas highlighting the party’s disconnect with Bengal’s history and culture. “We keep tying ourselves in knots while trying to appropriate Bengali icons,” a BJP leader said.
Trinamul pounced on the opportunity. “This shows the cultural standard of the BJP and its associates. They are utterly ignorant of most things. Still, they go on speaking without shame,” Trinamul vice-president Saugata Roy said.
Asked to respond at night, Khan claimed he was “very well aware” of who wrote what. “I simply meant that Jibanananda once quoted from Bharatchandra,” he said, without elaborating.
East Burdwan BJP general secretary Sunil Gupta defended Khan. “All Trinamul can do now is look for our mistakes. Khan may be guilty of misquoting and mentioning the wrong name, but the point he made was cent per cent correct.”
