Senior BJP leader Tathagata Roy is the former governor of Tripura. (File)
Senior BJP leader Tathagata Roy Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow West Bengal's tableau on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to feature in the Republic Day parade in the national capital, a day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made a similar appeal to the PM.
Mr Roy, however, made it clear that his request to PM Modi should not be interpreted as extending support to Trinamool Congress' "petty politics".
"My appeal to the Prime Minister: please allow the West Bengal tableau in the Republic Day festivities. It features the exploits of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, whose organisation of the INA shook the faith of the British in their army and hastened their exit.@narendramodi," he tweeted.
"The Centre had started, for the first time, celebration of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anvsry as Parakram Diwas. Republic Day celebrations will now begin every year from January 23 instead of 24. So, let no state government claim credit for remembering Netaji!@narendramodi," the former governor of Tripura said.
Expressing shock over the Centre's decision to exclude West Bengal's tableau, which was set to highlight contributions of the legendary freedom fighter on his 125th birth anniversary, from the upcoming Republic Day Parade in Delhi, Ms Banerjee on Sunday wrote to the Prime Minister, urging him to reconsider the decision.
"I have been profoundly shocked and hurt by the decision of the Government of India to abruptly exclude the proposed tableau of the Government of West Bengal from the ensuing Republic Day Parade. It is even more baffling for us that the tableau was rejected without assigning any reasons or justifications," Ms Banerjee said in a two-page letter to PM Modi.
As political circles went abuzz with Roy echoing the Bengal Chief Minister, the senior BJP leader said his appeal to PM Modi was only to highlight the contribution of Netaji and other freedom fighters.
"Quite a few seem exercised that I have appealed to the Prime Minister for inclusion of the West Bengal tableau on Republic Day. This is only to showcase the contribution of Netaji and the freedom fighters of undivided Bengal. Not to support TMC's petty politics@narendramodi," added Mr Roy, who has lashed out at BJP's West Bengal leaders on many occasions since the assembly poll debacle in the state.