*Paromita Das
Most people disparage the Bharatiya Janata Party, as an elitist organization. Justifiably so, considering how it has influenced politics through a creedal backbone of Hindu, upper-caste interests throughout its two terms of power and much earlier. The caste and class makeup of the BJP’s voter base, however, occasionally baffles commentators.
Critics were forced to decide whether Scheduled Tribe politician Draupadi Murmu’s selection as the party’s Presidential candidate was an example of on-brand stereotyping or an indication of equality that went against the grain.
The newly elected President Draupadi Murmu has come under fire repeatedly since the BJP announced its candidate for the Presidency.
Recently, an offensive Facebook post made by a General Manager of the India Today Media Network, on Thursday, about the incoming president Draupadi Murmu has gone viral online. Indranil Chatterjee, whose Linkedin profile states that he is a Deputy General Manager in the India Today Group, posted the problematic tweet.
Gen Manager of @IndiaToday insulted the newly elected President of India #DroupadiMurmu.
In a FB post, he writes, “Few Chairs are not meant for All…Do we allow a sweeper to perform Durga Puja…we have humiliated not only the Chair of Raisina Hills but also a few great souls…” pic.twitter.com/CrOtkzfnXe
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) July 21, 2022
“Just as I don’t support Gay marriage, similarly I don’t support an Adivasi President,” wrote Indranil in the post. He wrote, “Few chairs are not meant for “All” & have a dignity attached to them,” in an insult to the President-elect. Should a sweeper be permitted to perform Durga Puja? A Hindu may instruct in a Madrasah. These are nothing more than cheap socio-political tricks used by the ruling party to establish a rubber-stamp constitutional head so that laws can be passed quickly and the opposition parties are given the finger.
Indranil wrote, “Today, we have humiliated not only that Chair of Raisina Hills but also a few great souls like APJ Abdul Kalam, Pranab Mukherjee, S. Radhakrishnan, Zakir Hussain, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, Rajendra Prasad & the likes.” He was referring to the position of President of India.
After his Facebook post gained widespread attention on the platform, Indranil deleted his account. Indranil Chatterjee is a Deputy General Manager and Regional Head, East, at India Today Group, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Earlier on Sunday, rival NDA nominee Droupadi Murmu came under fire from opposition joint presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha, who claimed she would become a “silent, pliant, rubber-stamp Rashtrapati” if elected.
The ex-BJP leader made a passionate plea to lawmakers and Parliamentarians across the nation to support him regardless of their political affiliation in order to “save the Constitution, democracy, secularism, and India.”
He told saffron party lawmakers, “This election is your last chance to bring about the badly needed course correction in the BJP.”
कल राष्ट्रपति चुनाव से पहले वोट डालने जा रहे सभी सदस्यों से मेरी अपील:
अपनी अंतरात्मा की आवाज सुनें और मुझे वोट दें। pic.twitter.com/FawIxf1vas
— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) July 17, 2022
Sinha has repeatedly urged lawmakers to cast their ballots according to their consciences in the election, even though Murmu is almost certain to win because of the support of several non-NDA parties.
It should be noted that Draupadi Murmu of the NDA defeated Yashwant Sinha of the opposition to win the presidency. On June 20, 1958, she was born into a Santal Tribal family in the Odisha district of Mayurbhanj’s Uparbeda village. She held the position of honorable governor of Jharkhand from 2015 to 2021. She held the position of tribal leader in an Indian state for the first time and was the state’s first female governor.
The vote for India’s 15th president was cast on July 18 by about 4,800 MPs and MLAs. On July 25, Draupadi Murmu will take the oath of office.
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