Bangla Pokkho

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Bangla Pokkho
Bangla Pokkho logo.jpeg
Formation2018; 4 years ago (2018)
FounderDr. Garga Chatterjee
Founded atWest Bengal
TypeNon-communal, political and non-profit organisation[1]
Legal statusActive
FocusBengali nationalism
Rights of Bengalis
Promoting Bengali Culture
HeadquartersKolkata
Location
Region served
West Bengal
Tripura
Official language
Bengali
Websitewww.banglapokkho.com

Bangla Pokkho is a pro-Bengali organization that focuses on Bengali rights in the Indian Union, Bengali nationalism (not to be confused with Bangladeshi nationalism)[2] and works against the Hindi & Urdu linguistic imposition and imperialism. It is organized along linguistic lines and aimed at protecting Bengali culture.[3]

First National press meet of Bangla Pokkho

Demands and Protests[]

Bangla Pokkho majorly demands 100% reservation for residents of West Bengal in fields of Government job[4] and 90% reservation in other job sectors, education, military, administration works.[5] The group has done numerous meetings, gatherings and rallies throughout many places of West Bengal and Tripura.[4][6]

Bangla Pokkho, also demanding domicile reservation gave numerous deputations in universities, which eventually resulted in starting Domicile reservation in Calcutta University [7] and Jadavpur University[8]

Bangla pokkho also demanded for Bengali language in various exams i.e. Rail, JEE, NEET[2] etc., and in Banks, offices and other sectors. The group proposed that the top administrative officials in West Bengal must come from WBCS/WBPS cadre and not IAS/IPS.

Protests[]

Bangla Pokkho made protest when Bengali workers in WBSEDCL were expelled as they had not fluency in English and Hindi. After protests, the company has took back then and enacted them in respective places.[9][10]

Massive controversy broke out when in the second season of web series ‘Abhay’, released on OTT platform Zee5, young Bengali freedom fighter Khudiram Bose was shown as a ‘criminal’ in its 2nd episode. Bangla Pokkho along with many nationalist organisations protested and demanded the show to be banned.[11] The group sent a legal notice to remove the scene.[12] After that Zee5 edited and re-released the show cutting out the Khudiram image.[13]

The group opposed the CAA, NRC, planned by the central government to be implemented in Bengal. Bangla Pokkho said that the BJP unlawfully had passed the laws in the parliament to break the unity of Hindus and Muslims.[14]

The group also protested against the idea of formation of Gorkhaland. They fired an idol of Subramaniyam Swami who proposed to make a separate state from West Bengal namely Gorkhaland [15]

Bangla Pokkho along with Kanchanpur Nagarik Surakkha Mancha meet in a big protest in Tripura, that gathered more than 30,000 Bengalis in Tripura, complaining against social discrimination of Bengalis by the Tripura state BJP Government.[16]

Support and criticism[]

As of January 2019, Bangla Pokkho claimed to have over two to three hundred-thousand supporters, has members from across political parties like CPI(M), INC, TMC.[2] The group says it is not against BJP but defends against Hindi imperialist and anti-Bengali character of BJP. It is likely that many closet Bangla Pokkho supporters exist among BJP supporters as well.

BJP president Dilip Ghosh alleged that Bangla Pokkho was serving and being utilized by the interests of the TMC to incite regionalism in Bengal. The CPI(M) Politburo member Md. Salim has also criticized that Bangla Pokkho was in collusion with both the TMC and the BJP. Denying the allegations, Garga Chatterjee, the head of organisation, said the issues as “utterly baseless.”[17]

Subhojit Ghosh, an activist of the group was arrested in north Kolkata on the charges of promoting enmity between communities (Section 153A IPC) and assertion against national integration (153B IPC). He was kept in police custody till April 27.[18]

Maidul Islam, political analyst and faculty member of Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, terms this as rise of nativist politics after the decline of Left and its class politics.[17]

References[]

  1. ^ "Bangla Pokkho: Sub-Nationalism Cannot be A Solution to RSS Domination". September 26, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Bangla Pokkho: the outfit fighting for the rights of Bengalis". www.telegraphindia.com.
  3. ^ "Bangla Pokkho". www.banglapokkho.com.
  4. ^ a b "'Bangla Pokkho' seeks job, education reservation ahead of Bengal polls - The New Indian Express". www.newindianexpress.com.
  5. ^ "'Bangla Pokkho' seeks job, education reservation for Bengalis in Bengal - Times of India". The Times of India.
  6. ^ https://bengali.indianexpress.com/politics/bangla-pokkho-meeting-in-kolkata-for-demand-protection-of-bengal-son-of-the-soil-bhumiputra-277439/lite/&ved=2ahUKEwiL3subw_PuAhWaWX0KHYxwCqUQFjAEegQICBAL&usg=AOvVaw0CeFqxUG6u9rp81YZFz3Sa&ampcf=1[dead link]
  7. ^ "Calcutta University sets domicile term for tech entry". www.telegraphindia.com.
  8. ^ https://m.timesofindia.com/city/kolkata/ju-to-start-domicile-reservation-this-year/amp_articleshow/69882203.cms&ved=2ahUKEwi72NTO-tbuAhXyzzgGHbVzBugQFjAOegQIGBAC&usg=AOvVaw3_V7u-8t8JO9cINwiTMt0s&cshid=1612673164173[dead link]
  9. ^ Chakraborty, Ritika (October 17, 2020). "ইংরেজি না বলার অপরাধে আয়কর দফতর থেকে ছাঁটাই পাঁচ কর্মী, প্রতিবাদ বাংলা পক্ষের".
  10. ^ Chakraborty, Ritika (June 30, 2020). "'বাঙালিকে চাকরিতে নেবে না', প্রতিবাদ জানিয়ে থানায় অভিযোগ দায়ের বাংলা পক্ষের".
  11. ^ "অপরাধীদের মাঝে ক্ষুদিরামের ছবি! চাপে নিঃশর্ত ক্ষমা Zee5-এর, বিক্ষোভ বাংলা পক্ষের". Ei Samay.
  12. ^ "'Abhay 2' makers get legal notice after row over Khudiram Bose's image". The Federal. August 17, 2020.
  13. ^ Deep, Aroon (August 19, 2020). "Zee5 edits freedom fighter out of TV show after appearance on wanted board causes outrage".
  14. ^ Singha, Biswajit Roy and Aritra (December 15, 2019). "BJP is the most undemocratic party and the Bengalis are ready to fight back". eNewsroom India.
  15. ^ "সুব্রামানিয়াম স্বামীর কুশপুতুল পুড়িয়ে প্রতিবাদ, বাংলা ভাগের বিরুদ্ধে পথে নামল 'বাংলাপক্ষ' | Bangla pokkho protest against Subramaniyam Swamy on Gorkhaland remarks". bangla.asianetnews.com.
  16. ^ "ত্রিপুরায় আমন্ত্রিত বাংলা পক্ষ, জনসভায় ভিড় ৩০,০০০ বাঙালির". www.aajkaal.in/.
  17. ^ a b "Bengali-non-Bengali divide arising in West Bengal?". Deccan Herald. November 6, 2019.
  18. ^ "COVID-19 row: Bengali nationalist group's activist arrested". April 24, 2020 – via www.thehindu.com.

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