Kolkata, October 19, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
An FIR has been registered against CPI(M) West Bengal state secretary Md Salim over alleged derogatory remarks about Durga Puja, police said on Monday.
The FIR was registered at Tala police station in north Kolkata following a complaint filed by the BJP. Police said an investigation into the matter was underway.
The complaint was lodged by BJP spokesperson and party leader Saptarshi Chowdhury, who alleged that Salim, a former MP, had hurt Hindu religious sentiments through his comments about Durga Puja.
“The way he is making one comment after another about Maa Durga is making us Hindus feel uncomfortable. We are shocked by what he is saying about the Hindu community. I have filed a complaint at Tala police station in protest of the comments he has made about Maa Durga. We are waiting to see what action the police take,” Chowdhury said on Monday.
Salim has also criticised the ruling party and the West Bengal government over the deaths of 19 visitors in a stampede at the Chorebagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal.
Expressing shock over the deaths and injuries, Salim said no one wanted such a tragic situation to unfold during a festival. He extended condolences to the families of those who died and called for prompt arrangements to ensure the recovery of the injured.
Salim also praised local residents for their efforts during the rescue operation, alleging that a shortage of ambulances and police vehicles, along with the closure of roads to traffic, had hampered the movement of public transport. He said residents arranged Ola and Uber vehicles to transport people to hospitals.
He urged the state government to provide accurate and clear information to the families of those killed and injured.
The ruling party and the state government have rejected the allegations levelled against them.
Earlier, Salim had criticised the BJP and the state government over a government advertisement featuring a Durga idol with an extra hand.
“Till today, the BJP and the state government have not been able to decide how many hands the Durga idol has. Even atheists know that Durga has ten hands,” Salim had said.
He also accused the government of turning a public festival into a government-sponsored event and changing the character of Sharad Utsav.
“The government is turning a public festival into a government festival. They are trying to change Sharad Utsav into a Navratri festival by spending crores of rupees on painting the roads, bringing all the cloth for the pandals from Gujarat, and bringing in contractors. Why would this happen?” he said.
Reacting to the FIR, CPI(M) central committee member Sujan Chakraborty said the allegations concerned criticism of the government and questioned why the BJP had taken the initiative to file the complaint.
“These are allegations against the government. If there is any action to be taken, the government will respond. Why are they (BJP) doing all this on their own initiative? Anyway, I don’t think there is any need to comment on this,” Chakraborty said.
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 leader Md Salim over alleged derogatory remarks about Durga Puja in Kolkata.){kind=link}