As BJP latches on to Mamata’s Ramakrishna Mission, Sevashram remarks, TMC in damage control mode

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) and its supremo Mamata Banerjee tried to retrieve the situation on Monday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined the offensive over her comment that “a few monks” of the Hindu monastic orders Bharat Sevashram Sangha and Ramakrishna Mission were working against the TMC to help the BJP in Bengal.

Earlier in the day, Swami Pradiptananda Maharaj aka Kartik Maharaj, secretary of the Beldanga branch of the Sevashram Sangha in Murshidabad, sent Mamata a legal notice, seeking her unconditional apology for “tarnishing the revered institution’s image”.

Both the Sevashram and the Ramakrishna Mission, founded by Swami Vivekananda, are widely revered across the state, with individuals who have sought diksha (initiation) from either, or having studied in schools run by them, spread across many families.

Addressing a public meeting in Purulia on Sunday, Modi told the people to teach the TMC government a lesson through the ballot box, so that it “does not dare to insult such socio-religious organisations in the future”.

Accusing the Mamata government of “preferring violence” and “threatening voters” and not caring about “the sentiments of the people of Bengal”, the PM said: “This time, they have crossed all limits. ISKCON, Ramakrishna Mission created by Swami Vivekananda and Bharat Sevashram Sangha are known for their service and morality. They make the country proud… They have stooped so low only to please their vote bank.”

A senior TMC leader said they were worried about the impact of Mamata’s remarks. “The TMC has a strong organisation in the areas that go to polls now. We expect to gain in these phases. Such a statement just before voting will damage our narrative, because both these are popular religious