Indian Police Service officer Bushara Bano | Bushara Bano/LinkedIn
Indian Police Service officer Bushara Bano was transferred by the West Bengal government on Monday, two days after Hindutva groups criticised for using Islamic greetings in a video posted online, The Times of Indiareported.
In the video posted on Sunday, Bano had spoken about how the Residential Coaching Academy of the Aligarh Muslim University in Uttar Pradesh had helped her prepare for the Union Public Service Commission exam.
Some social media accounts including The Jaipur Dialogue and the Hindu Legal Fund, had criticised the Muslim IPS officer for saying “assalamualaikum”, a greeting that means “peace be unto you”, as well as “inshallah”, a phrase meaning god willing, and “jazakallah”, which means “may god reward you”.
They said that she had not said “Vande Mataram” or “Jai Hind”.
“A serving officer representing the Indian state should maintain neutrality and use national expressions in public communication,” The Hindu Legal Fund had said.
The group said that it had filed a complaint with the West Bengal home secretary and sought action.
Bano, a 2021 batch officer, was the additional superintendent of police in Paschim Medinipur district’s Kharagpur. On Monday, Bano was made the deputy commanding officer of the State Armed Police’s 4th battalion.
Two other officers were also transferred as part of the same order.
The Opposition criticised the government’s decision.
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra said that while one Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre was “showing off secular credentials” at the BRICS summit in Delhi “by creating ‘prayer room’”, another at the state level “sidelines Muslim woman IPS officer...simply for saying ‘assalamalaikum’ and ‘jazakallah’”.
The state government was “furthering hate spread by godimedia TV”, of lapdog media, Moitra said.
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