Ambedkar row: Mamata says Amit Shah’s remarks display of BJP’s ‘anti-Dalit’ mindset; TMC moves privilege motion | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Joining the opposition chorus on Union home minister Amit Shah’s remarks, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party alleging that the comments reflect the saffron party’s “castiest” and “anti-dalit mindset”. The TMC supremo claimed that the BJP’s “mask had fallen off” and if the party would’ve secured its pre-poll aspirations of 400 seats in the Lok Sabha they would have “rewritten history to entirely erase Dr. Ambedkar’s contributions.”
“The mask has fallen! As Parliament reflects on 75 glorious years of the Constitution, HM Amit Shah chose to TARNISH this occasion with DEROGATORY remarks against Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, that too in the temple of Democracy. This is a display of BJP’s CASTEIST and ANTI-DALIT mindset.” the West Bengal chief minister said.
“If this is how they behave after being reduced to 240 seats, imagine the damage they would’ve inflicted if their dream of 400 seats had been realised. They’d have rewritten history to entirely erase Dr. Ambedkar’s contributions,” she continued in her post on X.
Banerjee further added that the “outrageous” remark by Amit Shah was not only an attack on Ambedkar but also on “all members of the Drafting Committee of the Constitution.”

Following Banerjee’s sharp attack, TMC leader in Rajya Sabha Derek O’Brien submitted a privilege notice against the union home minister for his remarks, news agency PTI reported quoting sources.
During his speech in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, marking the conclusion of a two-day debate on the Constitution, Shah criticised the Congress Party, suggesting it had turned the invocation of Ambedkar’s name into a ‘fashion’. He said, “If they had taken the name of God as often as Ambedkar’s, they would have secured heaven for seven lives.”

In response, Opposition MPs accused Shah of disrespecting Ambedkar, prompting protests within Parliament, with MPs holding up photos of the Constitution’s architect. Congress MP Manickam Tagore had tabled an adjournment motion to debate the issue.
Union minister Kiren Rijiju defended Shah, alleging that Congress had long undermined Ambedkar and questioned their true respect for him. Rijiju, the first Buddhist to serve as Union Law Minister since Ambedkar, emphasised the significance of the position.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also supported Shah, accusing Congress of a long history of insulting Ambedkar and failing to empower SC/ST communities during their time in power.
Both houses of Parliament, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, were adjourned for the day today amid protests by the Opposition over remarks made by Shah.