Bengal Congress files police complaint against Bageshwar Baba over meat diktat
West Bengal Congress lodged a police complaint against Bageshwar Dham priest Dhirendra Shastri for his Durga Puja meat appeal, alleging it hurts Bengali sentiments and could cause disharmony.
The West Bengal Congress has lodged a police complaint against Bageshwar Dham head priest Dhirendra Shastri, popularly known as Bageshwar Baba, over his recent appeal urging Bengalis to abstain from non-vegetarian food during Durga Puja. The complaint, filed on Tuesday at the Bhawanipore police station in Kolkata, alleges that his remarks hurt the religious sentiments of Bengalis and were intended to create social disharmony.
The South Kolkata District Congress Committee submitted the complaint, accusing Mr. Shastri of making "derogatory" comments during an event in Howrah on September 5. Committee president Pradip Prasad urged the police to initiate immediate administrative action, register an FIR, and make necessary arrests.
The Congress asserted that the remarks could spark disharmony in society and ran contrary to democratic values. Mr. Shastri had described people who consume meat on religious occasions as "hypocrites" and called on Bengalis to give up non-vegetarian food during the festival.