East Bengal fans with a poster during the Durand Cup. (X)

At a Durand Cup match, East Bengal fans made a stirring political statement that resonated far beyond the football pitch. East Bengal FC edged past Namdhari FC 1-0 in their Group A clash, but it was the strong message from the stands that caught everyone's attention. Fans held up a powerful poster that read: "Yesterday, we were hanged fighting for India’s freedom. And today, for speaking our mother’s tongue, we become Bangladeshi?" The protest gained added significance amid a fresh controversy involving the Bengali language. On Sunday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee strongly criticized the Delhi Police for referring to Bengali as the "Bangladeshi national language" in an official letter related to an investigation under the Foreigners Act. Banerjee condemned the reference as insulting, anti-national, and unconstitutional. The letter in question was addressed to the officer-in-charge of Banga Bhawan, the West Bengal government’s official guest house in Delhi. It requested a translator following the arrest of eight individuals suspected of illegally entering India from Bangladesh. Banerjee shared the letter on her Facebook page, expressing outrage and calling out the Delhi Police, which operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. “See now how Delhi Police under the direct control of the Ministry of Home, Government of India, is describing Bengali as 'Bangladeshi' language!” Banerjee wrote. She emphasized that Bengali is not only her mother tongue but also the language of literary and cultural icons like Rabindranath Tagore and Swami Vivekananda. She noted that both India’s national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ by Tagore and the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay were written in Bengali. “... the language in which crores of Indians speak and write, the language which is sanctified and recognised by the Constitution of India, is now being described as a Bangladeshi language!!” she stated. The Trinamool Congress supremo called the central government “anti-Bengali” and urged people to protest what she termed anti-Constitutional language. “Scandalous, insulting, anti-national, unconstitutional!! This insults all Bengali-speaking people of India. They cannot use this kind of language, which degrades and debases us all. We urge immediate, strongest possible protests from all against the anti-Bengali Government of India, who are using such anti-Constitutional language to insult and humiliate the Bengali-speaking people of India,” she said. The Trinamool Congress also shared the controversial letter on their official handle on X (formerly Twitter).

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