"We all are bhakts of Lord Ram, Lord Krishna, Maa Durga & Maa Kali," said Shatrughan Sinha (PTI File)
Actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Sunday tweeted his support for Mamata Banerjee, who has been facing controversy over her reaction to slogans of "Jai Shri Ram". The Chief Minister, who got off her car several times to reprimand the sloganeers, has been criticized and ridiculed - not only by the BJP, but also the Congress and the Left. In a series of messages directed at the Mamata Banerjee-baiters, Shatrughan Sinha on Sunday said "enough is enough".
"Politicizing in the name of religion is not advisable nor acceptable, as people want growth, development & progress. The entire nation is watching this disrespect to a lady of substance, in the true sense especially after the alleged malpractices by the machines & results during the just concluded elections," his tweet read.
Mr Sinha, who changed camp from the BJP to the Congress ahead of the elections, had earlier expressed his regard for Ms Banerjee when she held a huge rally in Kolkata to unite the opposition against the BJP. This time, he hailed her as a "great tigress".
"We all are bhakts of Lord Ram, Lord Krishna & also Maa Durga & Maa Kali. Why make a difficult situation even worse, else be prepared to receive a befitting reply from the people in general & masses of Bengal in particular," another tweet from Mr Sinha read.
On at least two occasions, Ms Banerjee has been seen taking on the people shouting "Jai Shri Ram" slogans. The BJP has portrayed it as the Chief Minister's fury at losing ground in her state. In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the ruling Trinamool had ceded ground to the BJP, sliding from 34 of the state's 42 seats to 22. The BJP, on the other hand, has increased its tally from two to 18 seats.
After a huge uproar, Mamata Banerjee, in a Facebook post, had clarified her stand, saying her objection was not to the "Jai Shri Ram" slogan, but the manner in which BJP workers were using it to "create unrest in West Bengal by mixing religion with politics".
"I have no problem with political parties using any particular slogan in their rallies. Every political party has its own slogan. My party has Jai Hind and Vande Mataram, the Left has Inquilab Zindabad, but we respect each other," the West Bengal Chief Minister said in her post.