2 hrs ago
West Bengal Transfers Muslim IPS Officer After Hindutva Complaint
Bushara Bano is a police officer in West Bengal.
She made a video about how an academy helped her prepare for a national civil service exam.
In the video, she used some Islamic greetings and phrases.
Two groups criticised her because she did not use expressions such as “Vande Mataram” or “Jai Hind.”
One group said government officers should use neutral, national expressions in public.
The groups said they complained to the state home secretary.
Two days later, the West Bengal government transferred Bano to another police position.
A politician from the Trinamool Congress criticised the transfer.
The government did not publicly give a reason for it in the report.
IPS officer Bushara Bano was transferred two days after Hindutva groups criticised her online video.
The groups objected to her use of Islamic greetings and phrases, including “assalamualaikum” and “inshallah.”
Bano discussed how Aligarh Muslim University’s Residential Coaching Academy helped her prepare for the UPSC examination.
She was moved from additional superintendent of police in Kharagpur to deputy commanding officer of the State Armed Police’s 4th battalion.
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra criticised the decision, while the government’s reason for the transfer was not stated.
- Who
- Bushara Bano, a 2021-batch Indian Police Service officer; Hindutva groups; and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra.
- What
- Bano was transferred within the West Bengal police after groups criticised Islamic expressions she used in an online video.
- Where
- The transfer concerned Bano’s posting in Paschim Medinipur district’s Kharagpur and her new assignment in the State Armed Police’s 4th battalion.
- When
- The video was posted on Sunday, and Bano’s transfer was ordered on Monday, two days after the criticism described in the report.
- Why
- The groups said her use of Islamic greetings, without expressions such as “Vande Mataram” or “Jai Hind,” did not reflect neutrality; the government’s stated reason for the transfer was not provided.
Critics of the Transfer
Groups Seeking Official Neutrality
Reason for the transfer
Critics of the Transfer
Mahua Moitra said the state had sidelined a Muslim woman IPS officer simply for using Islamic greetings and accused it of furthering hate spread by media.
Groups Seeking Official Neutrality
The Hindu Legal Fund sought action, arguing that a serving officer representing the Indian state should maintain neutrality and use national expressions in public communication.
Public language used by officers
Critics of the Transfer
Moitra’s criticism treated Bano’s use of “assalamualaikum” and “jazakallah” as protected personal or religious expression rather than a reason for official action.
Groups Seeking Official Neutrality
The Hindu Legal Fund and other critics objected that Bano did not say “Vande Mataram” or “Jai Hind,” which they considered more appropriate national expressions for a public officer.
Key facts
- Officer
- Bushara Bano, a 2021-batch Indian Police Service officer
- Previous post
- Additional superintendent of police in Kharagpur, Paschim Medinipur
- New post
- Deputy commanding officer of the State Armed Police’s 4th battalion
- Video subject
- The Residential Coaching Academy of Aligarh Muslim University and its role in Bano’s UPSC preparation
- Criticised phrases
- “Assalamualaikum,” “inshallah,” and “jazakallah”
- Complaint
- The Hindu Legal Fund said it complained to the West Bengal home secretary
- Political response
- Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra criticised the transfer
Quotes
The Hindu Legal Fund
A group that criticised Bano’s use of Islamic greetings and said it filed a complaint with West Bengal’s home secretary
“A serving officer representing the Indian state should maintain neutrality and use national expressions in public communication.”
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Sources
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