London: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, currently on a visit to the United Kingdom, had to pull out a poster-sized image of herself from the 1990s to pacify a group of students while speaking at Oxford University’s Kellogg College. While speaking at the event, Banerjee also had to face ‘go back’ slogans from the audience, reportedly led by Students’ Federation of India (SFI-UK), a left-wing student organisation. The image that she showed to the gathering featured the attack made on her during the Left regime in West Bengal during the 1990s. It showed her head bandaged as she suffered serious injuries.
Holding up the image, she said, “First, see my picture, how an attempt was made to kill me.” The disruptions, however, continued.
Why the audience protest?
She was met with a series of protests and intense disruptions while she was speaking about her state’s development and investment model. The audience interrupted Banerjee with pointed questions. Moreover, questions were raised about the controversial RG Kar Medical College rape and murder case in Kolkata.
A member of the audience demanded to know how Banerjee’s government had handled the sensitive issue. This led to a sharp exchange between the two. She was also asked about the treatment of Hindus in Bengal. Banerjee replied: “I am for all, Hindus and Muslims.” Moments later, there were chants of “Go back” from a section of the audience. Irked over such disruptions, Banerjee lashed out at the protesters. “You should give me a chance to speak. You are not insulting me; you are disrespecting your institution,” she said.
Banerjee was also confronted with questions regarding the Tata Group’s controversial withdrawal from the state. To all these questions, she responded by referring to the image from the 1990s suggesting her political struggles.
SFI-UK claims responsibility for the protests
Following the event, SFI-UK issued a statement taking responsibility for the protest. “SFI-UK held a demonstration in Kellogg College, Oxford against Mamata Banerjee’s speech. We opposed her blatant lies by asking her for evidence of the social development she claims to pioneer. Instead of allowing us to peacefully express our opinions, the police were called,” they wrote on X.
