With reports of attacks on Kashmiris living in various parts of the state post Pulwama terror attack pouring in, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that a section of people have created their own religion to divide the people here. Advertising “How dare they enter the house of a doctor who has been living here for 20 years and ask him to leave the state? Who are these people and look at their audacity. My mother tongue never taught me to hate a person. They are branding people as terrorists. Can we ever say that a Punjabi living here will not speak in his mother tongue? Can we ever ask a Kashmiri shawlwallah to leave the state just because one incident has taken place? Some people have invented a new religion to decide who will remain in the country and who will not. They are dictating everything. We don’t believe in this religion,” Mamata said at an event held to observe International Mother Language Day. The comments from the CM came in the wake of a series of attacks against Kashmiris living in various parts of the state by mobs after the Pulwama terror strike on February 14. A group of shawl traders from Kashmir were targeted in Kolkata on Sunday night and another was severely beaten up in Nadia’s Taherpur area. “Whoever is responsible for that incident (Pulwama attack), action must be taken against him. But if some people think that they can take law into their hands, then we won’t tolerate it. We don’t believe in theory which divides people along religious lines,” she said. “Our Bengali poet Srijato was also harassed in Assam. A section of people are following this type of extremism which is not prescribed by any religion,” she added. “West Bengal is the only place which respects every language. We don’t hate anyone. We love all languages, religions and cultures. We don’t believe in divisive politics. We don’t believe in politics of mean-mindedness. We want the people to remain united. We want the country to remain united. India cannot be a place for terrorist activities. India cannot be a place for half-educated and fools,” she added. Advertising Meanwhile, she also reopened Priya theatre which was closed following a fire incident last year.

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