tmc-labels-sanjeev-sanyal-as-a-contemporary-mir-jafar-following-his-comments-against-bengal-bjp-issues-a-retort

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) issued a stern condemnation on Friday against Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM), for his remarks targeting West Bengal in a recent interview.

 

Terming Sanyal as a "modern-day Mir Jafar," the party expressed strong disapproval of his comments.

 

During the podcast interview, Sanyal made critical remarks about Jyoti Basu, alleging his involvement in the Marichjhapi massacre, the closure of businesses, and mismanagement of electricity supply during his tenure. 

 

Sanyal reminisced about his own experiences growing up in a middle-class family, where homework was often done by lantern and candlelight due to frequent power outages.

 

Sanyal questioned the rationale behind Basu's repeated re-election despite his perceived lack of performance. He attributed this phenomenon partly to electoral malpractice, including booth capturing but emphasized a deeper issue of what he termed a "poverty of aspiration."

 

“If your society aspires that the highest form of life is a union leader or an adda intellectual. That is your aspiration that you are sitting around smoking and sipping your Old Monk and passing judgment on the rest of the world, rather than doing anything. That is the aspiration of the society. If Mrinal Sen’s movies are the aspiration of your society, then do not complain that that is what you get,” Sanyal said.

 

Following the interview, the TMC expressed its strong disapproval on social media platform 'X'. The party criticized the BJP, labeling them as "hate spewing Bangla-Birodhis," and accused them of breaching decency boundaries.

 

Referring to Sanjeev Sanyal as "PM @narendramodi's Chief Economic Advisor" and likening him to a "modern-day Mir Jafar," the TMC denounced his criticism of Bengal's culture, particularly his assertion of a "Poverty of Aspirations." They ridiculed Sanyal for allegedly belittling Bengal's rich cultural heritage, including mocking renowned filmmaker Mrinal Sen and Kolkata's vibrant culture.

 

Mir Jafar, known for his betrayal leading to British conquests in Bengal and India during the 18th century, was invoked to highlight the perceived betrayal by Sanyal and the BJP against Bengal's interests.

 

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh also responded to Sanjeev Sanyal’s comments and said, “He should know that what Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow. Bengal is leading on all fronts like music, culture, education, economics, research, science and other areas. Bengal’s projects are copied in different states. So, he has no right to defame Bengal. He may criticise the time when the CPI(M) was in power but his main target was to defame Bengalis.”

 

TMC's Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar leveled accusations against the bureaucrat, alleging attempts to incite animosity against the state. 

 

Sircar pointed out that the Prime Minister had halted funds to West Bengal and highlighted the absence of any Cabinet Minister from the state despite its 18 MPs.