Bengal BJP chief does U-turn, says remarks on Mamata's PM prospects were made in jest
Kolkata, Jan 6 : In a U-turn, West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh Sunday said his remark on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's prime ministerial prospects was made in jest, even as the opposition claimed that the statement reflected a "tacit understanding" between the TMC and the saffron party.
Extending his birthday wishes to the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo, Ghosh Saturday said Banerjee "needs to remain fit" because she was currently the only one who had the chance of becoming the first Bengali prime minister.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also claimed that the chief minister was ahead in the race among Bengalis.
"On Saturday, when reporters asked me whether I would like to make any comment on Mamata Banerjee, I just extended my best wishes to her. Whatever I said about her prime ministership was just a joke. I was joking as it was her birthday," Ghosh told PTI.
The Congress, however, said the statement was "sort of an admission" from the state BJP chief, who probably knew that the chances of the saffron party returning to power at the Centre after this year's general election were "slim".
"The statement reflects two things -- a covert understanding between the BJP and the TMC, and that attempts to forge federal fronts are ploys to divide the opposition," senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Abdul Mannan told PTI.
Ghosh's remark showed that he was certain that the BJP would not come back to power, he added.
Echoing similar sentiments, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leadership said the "tacit understanding between the TMC and the BJP is now out in the open".
"We have been saying this for a long time that the TMC and the BJP are playing a fixed political match in the state. Now the state BJP president himself has given a proof of it with his remarks," CPI(M) central committee member Sujan Chakraborty said.
In his defence, Ghosh said his remark should not be taken "seriously".
"Anyone with a bit of political sense can very well say that Mamata Banerjee can never become the prime minister with the number of Lok Sabha seats she has," he said.
When approached, the TMC leadership declined to comment on the issue.
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Bhojshala complex registered as 'mosque' in old revenue records: Muslim side to MP HC
Indore (PTI): The disputed Bhojshala Temple-Kamal Maula Mosque complex has historically been registered as a 'mosque' in revenue records and available sources don't clearly mention any Saraswati temple established by then-king Raja Bhoj, the Muslim side has told the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
The Hindu community considers Bhojshala a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, while the Muslim side calls the 11th-century monument Kamal Maula Mosque. The disputed complex located in Dhar district is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
During the hearing before the HC's Indore bench of Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi on Wednesday, Qazi Moinuddin questioned two PILs filed as intervenors in the Bhojshala case by an organisation named Hindu Front for Justice, one Kuldeep Tiwari and another individual.
Moinuddin claims to be a descendant of Sufi saint Maulana Kamaluddin Chishti and the 'Sajjadanashin' (spiritual head, guru, or successor of a Sufi shrine, khanqah, or religious site).
The PILs state that Bhojshala is actually a Saraswati temple and only Hindus should be granted the right to worship at the disputed complex.
Moinuddin's lawyer, Noor Ahmed Sheikh, claimed in the court that his client's ancestors, who are descendants of Maulana Kamaluddin Chishti, have historically held titles to the complex, and the site was also recorded as a "mosque" in government revenue records.
He contended that those associated with the management of the Kamal Maula Mosque, located within the complex, have been in "continuous and peaceful occupation" of the site for a long time.
Citing Muslim law, Sheikh argued that in the case of religious property, particularly a mosque or its related properties, officials such as the Sajjadanashin and Mutawalli (person entrusted with management, maintenance, and administration of a Waqf), and their descendants, not only have the right to intervene, but also have the right to manage and use such a structure.
Citing provisions of the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act 1904, the Muslim side's lawyer said the term "in-charge of the property" is used in this law, which makes it clear that the person or party who has been in charge of a property for a long time has rights over it.
During the hearing, Touseef Warsi, the lawyer representing the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society of Dhar, claimed that Hindu parties in both PILs had made "misleading representations" regarding historical facts before the high court.
He further claimed that available historical sources do not clearly mention the existence of a Saraswati temple established by Raja Bhoj, the legendary king of the Parmar dynasty who ruled Dhar from 1010 to 1055.
The ASI, a central government agency, has adopted three different positions in the lawsuits filed regarding the Bhojshala dispute, changing its answers from time to time, and this situation raises serious questions about judicial scrutiny of the complex, Warsi submitted.
He raised objections regarding the ASI's process of scientific survey of the Bhojshala complex, carried out on the HC order in 2024, and the method of videography and requested the court to examine these objections.
The hearing in the Bhojshala case will continue on Thursday.
The HC has been regularly hearing four petitions and one writ appeal since April 6, contesting the religious nature of the monument.
