West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday demanded the removal of the "insulting plaques" which omit the name of Rabindranath Tagore from Visva Bharati’s stone tablets commemorating UNESCO’s award of World Heritage Site to the Santiniketan-based university.
She said the current plaques were an "arrogant display of self-absorbed narcissism". Plaques put up by Visva Bharati last week have the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as chancellor of the university and vice-chancellor Prof Bidyut Chakrabarty.
Since Friday, TMC party workers have been protesting in front of the university demanding removal of the plaques.
"Abrasive and arrogant display of self-absorbed narcissism continues in what was once the Gurudev 's abode!! UNESCO recognises the world heritage of Santiniketan, but the local headman of today continues to flaunt his own little name in memorial pieces," she said in a statement.
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She added, "For God's sake, remove the insulting plaques which erase out the name of Rabindranath Tagore from the face of the institution that the poet had so painstakingly founded!! Show some dignity and humility!! The ruling dispensation at Delhi should take corrective action forthwith," she added.
The Visva-Bharati vice-chancellor had on Sunday said work was underway to "prepare" a plaque retaining UNESCO's declaration of Santiniketan as a world heritage site and in adherence to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) guidelines.
-With PTI input
