After sparking a controversy with her “bursting firecrackers can cure several diseases” remark, West Bengal BJP MLA Papiya Adhikari on Monday withdrew her controversial statement, claiming it was based
on an old belief passed down by ancestors.
The actor-turned-politician and Tollygunge MLA also blamed the media for allegedly misrepresenting her comments.
What Did Papiya Adhikari Say?
The controversy erupted after the MLA made the statement while attending a Kali Puja inauguration in her Tollygunge constituency. A firecracker burst in front of her as she addressed the gathering, prompting her to defend the practice.
“Our Chief Minister has said that we will burst firecrackers. How can Kalu Puja be complete without firecrackers? We will definitely burst firecrackers. However, we will follow the guidelines by the police,” she said in Bangla, adding, “You will see that bursting firecrackers will cure several diseases.”
When questioned about the remark after it went viral, Adhikari dismissed the criticism and accused the media of giving her statement a different interpretation.
“Nahi, nahi aisa baat koi kuch nahi hai. Ye media waalon ne kya maine kar rahe hain mujhe pata nahi hai. Ye nahi karna chahiye (No, no, nothing like that at all. I don’t know what the media is up to. They shouldn’t be doing this),” she said, according to NDTV.
Explaining her statement, the MLA referred to traditional beliefs associated with religious rituals and the lighting of lamps. She said such practices were believed to help eliminate social evils but acknowledged that the claims were not relevant in today’s scientific age.
“Purvaj ka ye kahavat tha ki ye sab hota hai. Asal main ye deep ka parv hai. Diya jalane ka parv hai. Samajik jitna buraiyaan hota hai woh mitaya jaata hai. Toh ye hamara jo yagya hota tha, ya deep jalane se bahut kuch mitaya jaata tha. Abhi toh firecrackers ka yug aa gaya toh abhi science itna badh chuka hai ki ye baat abhi theek nahi hai. (Our ancestors used to say that all of this – the lighting of lamps – serves a purpose. In essence, this is a festival of lights – a festival of lighting lamps – meant to eradicate social evils. In the past, this ritual – this yagya or the act of lighting lamps – was believed to help eliminate many such ills),” she said.
Adhikari subsequently apologised to anyone hurt by her remarks and said she was withdrawing the statement.
“Toh agar koi aahat hua toh hum kshama maang lete hain. Hum mera baat wapas bhi le sakte hain. Wapas le liya, samjho. Lekin ye samajik buraiyaan mit jata tha, abhi mit jaati hai (So, if anyone has been hurt, we apologise. We can even retract what we said – consider it retracted. But these social evils used to be eradicated, and they are still being eradicated today),” she added.
