Modi Accuses Bengal Govt of Disrespecting President Murmu

Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the West Bengal state government of disrespecting President Droupadi Murmu during her recent visit to the state, while criticizing the ruling Trinamool Congress for broader governance failures at a large rally in Kolkata on Saturday.

Speaking to thousands of supporters at Brigade Parade Ground to conclude the Bharatiya Janata Party's Parivartan Yatra campaign, Modi described the alleged mishandling of the president's program as an insult not only to Murmu but also to the nation's tribal communities and the Constitution. The president, who belongs to the Adivasi community, had traveled to north Bengal last week to participate in a Santhal tribal festival near Siliguri. According to Modi, the state government boycotted the event and allowed it to descend into chaos, with no reception provided by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee or any state ministers at the airport. "Just a few days ago, the President of our country, the esteemed daughter of the Adivasi community, Honble Smt. Droupadi Murmu ji, had come to Bengal. She was to participate in the sacred festival of the Santhal Adivasi tradition, but this ruthless government, steeped in arrogance,...