Sun Aug 03 17:20:45 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing and rewriting the provided text:
**The Hindu: National News**
**Bengali Language Row Erupts as Delhi Police Letter Sparks Outrage in West Bengal**
**KOLKATA, August 3, 2025 (The Hindu)** – A political firestorm has erupted in West Bengal after a letter from the Delhi Police referred to Bangla, also known as Bengali, as a “Bangladeshi language.” The letter, dated July 29, 2025, from the Officer-in-Charge of Lodhi House Police Station, requested the translation of documents written in the language in connection with an FIR involving suspected Bangladeshi nationals residing in Delhi.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee vehemently condemned the description, calling it “scandalous, insulting, anti-national, and unconstitutional.” She has called for strong protests against the “anti-Bengali Government of India,” arguing that it insults all Bengali-speaking Indians and degrades their identity.
Banerjee, highlighting the significance of Bengali, emphasized that both the national anthem and national song are written in the language, which is spoken by crores of Indians and recognized by the Constitution.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has seized upon the incident, framing it as an attack on Bengali Asmita (identity), particularly in light of recent concerns regarding the treatment of migrant workers in BJP-ruled states. TMC General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee labeled the incident not as a “mere clerical error,” but a “calculated attempt” by the BJP to equate West Bengal with Bangladesh for political gain. He demanded the immediate suspension of the Investigating Officer, Amit Dutt, and a public apology from the Delhi Police, the BJP, and the Home Ministry.
Several TMC leaders have echoed these sentiments on social media and in press conferences, accusing the BJP of pushing an “anti-Bengali agenda.”
The BJP has countered these accusations, with leader Amit Malviya accusing Chief Minister Banerjee of “weaponizing language and stoking sentiment over a lawful police action against Bangladeshi infiltrators.” He asserted that the government would deal strictly with illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators and Rohingyas, dismissing the TMC’s protests as “political grandstanding and vote-bank politics.”
The controversy is expected to escalate, with the TMC planning a “language movement” leading up to next year’s Assembly polls. The incident has ignited a sensitive debate about identity, language, and national belonging, adding further tension to the already fraught political landscape.
First Piper 