Kolkata: West Bengal BJP MP Dilip Ghosh on Sunday sparked a row with his comments on the ‘India Vs Bharat’ controversy, stating that the India will be renamed Bharat and those who oppose the name change are free to leave the country. He also said that all statues of foreigners in Kolkata will be removed if the BJP is voted to power in the state.
Speaking at ‘Chai pe Charcha’ programme in Kharagpur city, which falls under his Medinipur constituency, the former BJP national vice president said: “When our party comes to power in West Bengal, we will remove all statues of foreigners in Kolkata.”
He said the BJP, if voted to power, will “uproot” all statues of foreigners from the streets of Kolkata and put them in the Victoria Memorial House museum.
“These objects belong in the museum, not on the streets. We won’t allow our children to wake up in the morning and see faces of foreigners on the street,” Ghosh said.
“The objects of the museum will remain in the museum, not on the streets. Our children will wake up in the morning and see that the faces of foreigners will not be followed,”
The Medinipur MP said India will become Bharat and those against the change can leave the country.
“India will be renamed as Bharat. Those not liking it are free to leave the country,” the senior BJP leader said.
Ghosh also took potshots at the TMC and Communist Party of India (CPI) for opposing the renaming of India to Bharat, claiming that the two parties do not know the history behind India’s name.
“The TMC might don’t know why they are saying ‘Bharat’ or ‘India’, what is the history behind it. It is very difficult for CPM people too, those who have always been paying attention to foreign countries,” he stated.
Another veteran BJP leader from West Bengal, Rahul Sinha, asserted that a country cannot have two names and thus it is the “correct time” to officially change the India’s name to Bharat as world leaders are present in New Delhi to attend the G20 summit.
BJP ‘scared’ of INDIA
Meanwhile, the ruling Trinamool Congress claimed the BJP was using such tactics to “divert attention from real issues” as it is scared of the opposition INDIA alliance.
“The BJP is trying to divert attention from real issues as it is afraid of the opposition INDIA alliance,” TMC spokesman Santanu Sen claimed.
Opposition parties led by Congress have formed the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) to take on the BJP in Lok Sabha polls due next year.
(With PTI inputs)
