TMC leader says, 'If India's 30% Muslims unite, 4 Pakistans can be created'; BJP hits out

Ahead of West Bengal assembly elections, another Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader has courted controversy with his purported remarks that “four Pakistan” can be created if India’s “30% Muslim population comes together.”

TMC leader Alam Sheikh, while addressing his supporters in Basa para, Nanoor, in Birbhum was reportedly head saying, "“We minorities are 30%. The rest is 70%. They (BJP) think they will come to power (in Bengal) with this 70%. They should be ashamed…if 30% of minorities unite…if India’s Muslims unite, four Pakistan can be created. Where will India’s 70% go?”

According to the 2011 Census, Bengal’s Muslim population is a little over 27% accounting for 14.2% of India’s total population. Sheikh made the comments while campaigning for TMC candidate  Nanoor (SC) Bidhan Chandra Majhi. 

Mamata's brazen appeasement politics

His remarks about breaking India has drawn flak from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with its leader Amit Malviya questioning TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee whether she endorsed such position. Malviya, who is the BJP's co-in-charge for West Bengal, tweeted a video that showed Alam making the controversial statements and said, “…He obviously owes his allegiance to (chief minister) Mamata Banerjee… Does she endorse this position?” 

“TMC leaders like Sheikh Alam have the audacity to dream of 4 Pakistan because of Mamata Banerjee’s brazen appeasement politics over the last 10 years. She reduced the majority community in Bengal to second-grade citizens, where they had to seek court approval even for Durga visarjan!” he said in a subsequent tweet.

The controversy comes just two days ahead of the first round of polling in a politically charged atmosphere of West Bengal that will go to elections in eight phases starting March 27. The polarisation debate between BJP and  TMC has taken the centre stage in the run-up for polls.

The BJP has accused Banerjee’s government of minority appeasement at the cost of other communities, while the national party appears to consolidate the Hindu vote including all castes, to win Bengal. The saffron party has for long cornered Banerjee for objecting “Jai Shri Ram” chant, to which the TMC chief attempted to hit back by reciting Chandipath at a rally in Nandigram and reach out to the Hindus.