The new spark in the happy festive season of Durga Puja this year is coming from none other, but the heart of Dussehra globally Kolkata itself. One of the puja organizers, “The Akhil Bharat Hindu
Mahasabha” in south Kolkata’s Ruby Park where the organizers depicted Mahatma Gandhi as Mahishasura, the demon whom goddess Durga is said to have killed due to which the occasion of Dussehra is celebrated.
The police had to step In at the Durga Puja mandap organized by the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha after a series of complaint regarding the incident started to come up on Sunday. Following which the organizers refashioned Mahatma Gandhi look-alike by adding curly hairs, moustache and darkening the skin tone color of the alleged idol, on Sunday (2nd October) itself.
But the major key point here is that this incident is perpetrated just when our country was celebrating 153rd birth anniversary of our father of nation on 2nd October 2022. This shows the differences on Gandhism openly and gave a rise in debate among intellectual for proper representation of our history without bending facts and reality, in our current societal conditions.
This has sparked also fire among netizens, who are demanding strict actions against the perpetrators for their deeds.
The official statement after the incident came soon when Chandrachur Goswami, the working president of Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha, a key functionary of the puja organizing committee, said, “Any resemblance of the Asura idol with Gandhiji is purely coincidental. But it is true we don’t believe in Gandhi ideologies.”
However, police officials said that FIR on the organizers had been lodged in Kasaba police station on Monday under sections 188, 283, 153B and 34 of the IPC. “We have collected relevant photographs and footage,” said joint police commissioner Murlidhar Sharma.
The idol artist has also been undertaken for questioning by the authorities for any specific guideline, details or instruction given by the organizers for making the idol.
The organizers even held a demonstration and road blockade at Ruby crossing on Monday afternoon in protest against alleged police action.
