‘Our Ancestors Said This’: West Bengal BJP MLA Retracts Firecracker-Cures-Diseases Remark

West Bengal BJP MLA Papiya Adhikari withdrew her remark that “bursting firecrackers will cure several diseases” on Monday after it triggered a political controversy. Adhikari, the actor-turned-politician and Tollygunge MLA, apologised to anyone hurt and said the comment drew from an old belief passed down by ancestors.

She also accused the media of misrepresenting what she had said. The row began after her comments at a Kali Puja inauguration in her Tollygunge constituency went viral.

Adhikari later said she was referring to traditional beliefs linked to religious rituals and lighting lamps. She also acknowledged that such claims do not fit the present scientific age.

Kali Puja Remarks

The controversy began at a local event. Adhikari was attending a Kali Puja inauguration in her Tollygunge constituency when a firecracker burst in front of her as she addressed the gathering.

She then defended the use of firecrackers during the festival and referred to remarks by the Chief Minister, “Our Chief Minister has said that we will burst firecrackers. How can Kali Puja be complete without firecrackers? We will definitely burst firecrackers. However, we will follow the guidelines by the police," she said in Bangla.

She added another line that drew the sharpest reaction. “You will see that bursting firecrackers will cure several diseases,” she said.

Media Backlash Response

The remark soon went viral. Adhikari then rejected the criticism and blamed the media for giving her statement a different meaning.

“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.

She later linked her comment to older beliefs around rituals, lamps and the idea of removing social evils. At the same time, she said those ideas were not valid in the current scientific age.

“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.

Apology And Retraction

She then apologised. Adhikari said she was sorry if her words had hurt anyone and made clear that she was taking the statement back.

“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.