Rising fuel prices, dealing with the second wave of COVID and the lack of availability of vaccines are topics that Banerjee will address in her speech
File image of Mamata Banerjee. PTI
With a view to the national votes for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, West Bengal’s Prime Minister Mamata Banerjee will deliver her first address on Martyrs Day after the overwhelming victory of the Trinamool Congress in the parliamentary elections from April to May.
What is the significance of the day of the martyrs?
The speech, which is due to be given at 2 p.m. today, marks the day in 1993 when 13 people were shot and killed by the police in Calcutta during a rally of the West Bengal Youth Congress under the leadership of Banerjee in order to issue a voting card request the only voting document. The protest established Banerjee as a political figure with a grassroots connection.
After breaking out of Congress in 1998, Mamata continues to celebrate July 21 every year.
How is Martyrs Day celebrated this year?
Banerjee’s speech will be broadcast on screens across West Bengal and other states such as Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Tripura and Delhi. The party has arranged podiums, big screens and translators for the live broadcast, sources told The Print.
What is special about this year’s Martyrs Day?
This is the first time since 1998 that the day’s celebrations have expanded to include states with a BJP government. Banerjee is expected to speak about the country’s economy and how it overcame the obstacles she faced in the 2021 general election.
Rising fuel prices, dealing with the second wave of COVID and the lack of availability of vaccines are also topics that are being addressed, according to The Week. “I would like to ask my people to gather at their respective stands from 1:00 pm to raise flags and show respect to the martyrs. Please do not gather in large numbers and keep social distance, ”said Mamata.
After the Martyrs Day event, Banerjee is expected to visit Delhi for four days over the coming week. She said she plans to visit President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi “when they get an appointment” while in Delhi.
Last year, Banerjee practically gave a speech on Martyrs Day about the COVID-19
Pandemic.
What’s BJP’s answer?
Meanwhile, the BJP’s West Bengal unit will also hold a program on the day to pay tribute to the victims of political violence in the state.
Samik Bhattacharya, the BJP’s chief spokesman in West Bengal, said the party would protest at its headquarters in Calcutta and the election office in Hastings, south of Calcutta.
The party will also post posters of 38 of its workers who allegedly died of political violence. Dharnas are also observed in Delhi’s Rajghat, where the slogans are “Aakranto Manush, Biponno Gonotontro” (Persecuted Citizens, Democracy Endangered).
