BJP’s appropriation of Rabindranath Tagore is a product of realpolitik

Ahead of the upcoming Legislative Assembly elections in West Bengal, the ruling All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) is engaged in Bengal sub-nationalism with its use of the slogan ‘Joy Bangla’.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2021

Joy Bangla is a salutation, slogan and war cry used by some Peoples in Bangladesh and Bengali dominated parts of India i.e. West Bengal, Tripura, Barak Valley and Manbhum District.

It is used to indicate nationalism towards the geopolitical, cultural and historical region of Bengal and Bangamata (or Mother Bengal).

It translates roughly to “Victory to Bengal” or “Hail Bengal”. The name of the slogan Joy Bangla comes from a poem named “Purna Abhinandan” (1922) by Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Joy Bangla was the slogan and war cry of the Mukti Bahini that fought for the independence of Bangladesh during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. In March 2020, the Bangladesh High Court declared ‘Joy Bangla’ as the national slogan of the country.