Amit Shah in Bengal, slams opposition to get over politics of regionalism

Midnapore, Dec 19: Home Minister Amit Shah said on Saturday that revolutionary Khudiram Bose is as much a pride for the whole of India as he is of Bengal, hitting out at those indulging in "narrow" politics of regionalism.

Garlanding the statue of Bose at the freedom fighter's ancestral residence here, Shah said that he has inspired the youth of the country with his slogan 'Vande Mataram' while he was hanged by the British in 1908.

"I want to tell those who are doing narrow politics in Bengal that Khudiram Bose is as much a pride of India as he is of Bengal," he said. The BJP leader said that those indulging in politics of regionalism should overcome it.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and other leaders of her party have often accused the BJP of bringing in "outsiders" to West Bengal ahead of assembly elections, likely in April-May next year.

On Saturday, Amit Shah arrived in Kolkata after 1 am on Saturday on a two-day visit to take stock of his party's affairs in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections slated to be held in the next few months.

Shah visited Swami Vivekananda's ancestral house in north Kolkata while kicking off his two-day visit to West Bengal.

"Today I am very happy and fortunate that I am visiting a place which inspires not just Indians but the entire world. This is the birthplace of Swami Vivekananda. Swamiji, during his life, had spread India's knowledge and culture to the entire world. He acquainted the entire world with universal brotherhood through his speech at the parliament of religions in USA. He was the person who tied modernism with spiritualism. He urged India to worship Bharat mata," Shah said.

Earlier, in a tweet upon his arrival in Kolkata, he wrote, "I bow to this revered land of greats like Gurudev Tagore, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Syama Prasad Mookerjee."