Daijiworld Media Network- Raipur

Raipur, Sep 1: A First Information Report (FIR) has been filed against Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra in Chhattisgarh over her alleged remarks on union home minister Amit Shah. The BJP’s West Bengal unit on Sunday accused the Krishnanagar MP of insulting the Scheduled Caste Matua community and hurting the religious sentiments of Sanatanis.

Reacting to the FIR, Moitra hit back, saying that Sanatan Dharma has been ‘leased out’ to the BJP for its political benefit. She stated, “BJP leaders are the only Hindus certified to speak on behalf of all Hindus… The rest of us are all lowly insects watching in awe at this amazing new version of BJP Hinduism”.

The controversy stems from a video of Moitra’s August 28 speech in Karimpur, where she allegedly criticized the BJP’s appeal to Scheduled Castes during elections and referenced the Laxmi Bhandar scheme. She reportedly said, “Throughout the year, you are Trinamool and during the elections, you are Sanatanis? A Scheduled Caste woman gets Rs 1,200 through the Laxmi Bhandar scheme …but during elections, it’s 85 votes for the BJP and 15 for other parties.”

BJP leaders slammed the remarks, accusing Moitra of maligning government schemes and hurting religious sentiments. State legal co-incharge Tarunjyoti Tiwari said, “Calling the Tulsi Mala ‘wooden malas’ shows TMC is against Hindus… The doles are taxpayers’ money, not TMC handouts.”

The FIR in Raipur was filed by resident Gopal Samanto under sections 196 (promoting enmity between groups) and 197 (imputations prejudicial to national integration) of the BNS. Superintendent of Police Lal Umed Singh said the remarks, allegedly made in Bengali during a media interaction on Thursday, also accused Shah of shirking responsibilities on border security.

Samanto claimed that many Bangladeshi refugees have been living in Raipur’s Mana Camp since 1971, and Moitra’s comments could incite tensions among communities and disturb peace.