With the rise of the BJP and Hindutva-oriented politics over the last decade, another notable aspect of West Bengal’s political landscape has been the emergence of Bengali identity politics, with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) also invoking the slogan of “Bengali asmita (pride)” during the latest campaign. Yet, more than the TMC, it is a relatively obscure, fringe organisation named Bangla Pokkho that has spearheaded movements around linguistic identity and preservation of Bengali heritage, with its rhetoric against non-Bengalis at times nearing bias.
Earlier this week, the organisation returned to the spotlight after Kolkata Police detained its co-founder, Garga Chatterjee, for allegedly circulating misleading information regarding electronic voting machines (EVMs) ahead of the recent Assembly polls, following a complaint lodged by the Election Commission (EC). Chatterjee was taken into custody on Tuesday and remanded to police custody until May 16.
On the day of the opening phase of polling on April 23 and again on results day on May 4, Chatterjee voiced apprehensions about alleged EVM manipulation and accused the EC of executing a “covert operation” through social media posts. Referring to Chatterjee’s online remarks, Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nand stated, “This generated varying perceptions among political groups and also created uncertainty.” The police had issued Chatterjee two notices requesting his appearance for questioning, but his non-compliance ultimately resulted in his arrest, the senior officer added.
Chatterjee earned his MBBS qualification from Kolkata Medical College and later obtained a PhD from Harvard University in the cognition, brain and behavior stream at the Vision Sciences Lab. He subsequently completed postdoctoral research at the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) from 2011 to 2014. Between 2012 and 2013, he also served as a lecturer at Lesley University in Massachusetts and, since 2014, has been associated as a faculty member at the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata.
This is not the first occasion on which Kolkata Police has detained Chatterjee. In August 2022, he was arrested for allegedly offending Assamese sentiments and fostering hostility between communities. The detention followed directions from the Gauhati High Court after an FIR was registered against him for purportedly making controversial comments about a ruler of the Ahom dynasty.
Chatterjee established Bangla Pokkho in 2019 together with Kaushik Maity, an engineer by profession, and several others to campaign for Bengali interests and the Bengali language, often advocating preference for Bengalis and Bengali over other linguistic and social groups in the state. During the recent Assembly elections, Chatterjee appealed to voters to support either the Trinamool Congress (TMC) or the Left, but not the BJP, describing it as a party of “outsiders”.
“We are struggling for the rights of Bengalis. Our position is that in West Bengal, every governmental function should operate in Bengali. Within our education framework, studying the Bengali language must be compulsory. Similar to Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and several other states, Bengali youth should receive priority in employment,” Maity told The Indian Express.
In the past few years, Bangla Pokkho has advocated, among other demands, compulsory Bengali signboards at commercial establishments. Last month, the organisation submitted a memorandum to former state Labour Minister Moloy Ghatak seeking protection for migrant Bengali workers. Bangla Pokkho also insisted that Bengalis occupy senior bureaucratic posts, including Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, Kolkata Police Commissioner, and Director General of West Bengal Police.
Following the R G Kar rape-murder incident, the organisation participated in protests and alleged that the accused, Sanjay Ray, hailed from a neighbouring state. It also raised questions regarding how the accused secured employment at a government-run hospital.