Mamata Banerjee extends Eid-ul-Fitr greetings, Twitterati wish her back with 'Jai Shri Ram'

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday conveyed her greetings and best wishes to the people of the state on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr. “Heartiest wishes to all on the occasion of #EidUlFitr Religion is a matter of personal faith but festivals are universal. Let us preserve this spirit of unity and live together in peace and harmony. #EidMubarak,” said Banerjee on Twitter.

Heartiest wishes to all on the occasion of #EidUlFitr

Religion is a matter of personal faith but festivals are universal. Let us preserve this spirit of unity and live together in peace and harmony. #EidMubarak

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) June 4, 2019

Interestingly, unlike previous years, soon after the Bengal chief minister posted the tweet, people started replying with “Jai Shri Ram”.

On Monday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who took part in several Iftar parties over the last few days, prayed for unity, peace and happiness on this occasion.

"Today, like previous years, I took part in Iftar organised by Kolkata Municipal Corporation. People from all communities and all walks of life were present. My prayers for unity, peace, prosperity and happiness for all," she tweeted.

Eid-ul-Fitr, which marks the culmination of the fasting month of Ramzan, will be celebrated across the country on Wednesday as the moon was sighted on Tuesday evening.

Jama Masjid Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari made the announcement after a meeting of the moon-sighting committee.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said its slogans in West Bengal would be "Jai Shri Ram" and "Jai Maha Kali", and the party would continue to campaign till the Trinamool Congress government was ousted from the state. "Our slogans in Bengal would be 'Jai Shri Ram' and 'Jai Maha Kali'. Bengal is the land of Maha Kali. We need goddess Kali's blessings," Kailash Vijayvargiya, the BJP's West Bengal affairs in-charge, told reporters during his first visit to the state after the saffron's party's stunning Lok Sabha poll performance in Bengal.

The inclusion of "Jai Maha Kali" in its list of slogans for the state comes at a time when the Trinamool Congress has accused the BJP of being a party of outsiders that does not understand the culture of Bengal. Banerjee had recently changed her profile picture on Twitter and Facebook to "Jai Hind, Jai Bangla" amid a war of words with the BJP, which she has accused of creating unrest in the state by "mixing religion with politics".

In a Facebook post on Sunday, Banerjee claimed that attempts were being made to propagate the ideology of hatred, which should be opposed. "'Jai Sia Ram', 'Jai Ram ji ki', 'Ram naam Satya hai' etc. have religious and social connotations. We respect these sentiments. But BJP is using religious slogan 'Jai Shri Ram' as their party slogan in a misconceived manner by way of mixing religion with politics," she wrote.

On Friday, the West Bengal BJP hit out at Banerjee for losing her temper when a group of men shouted 'Jai Shri Ram' in front of her car. It asked whether it is a crime to chant the phrase in the state.

On Thursday, Banerjee had lost her cool when some men shouted “Jai Shri Ram” as her motorcade passed through Bhatpara area under Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituency. Earlier this month in West Midnapore district, a video showed Banerjee getting angry when some men chanted 'Jai Shri Ram' at her motorcade.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) then decided to send 10 lakh post cards with "Jai Shri Ram" written on them to Banerjee.

As the political rivalry between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress intensifies with each passing day, a latest report claims that Banerjee-led party is planning to send 20 lakh cards with ‘Jai Hind’ and ‘Jai Bangla’ messages to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. According to a report by ‘The Telegraph’, ‘the plan is part of a bid by Trinamool to oppose ‘the BJP’s attempt to use ‘Jai Shri Ram’ as a party slogan by mixing religion with politics to spread hatred’.