On Friday (14th August), the West Bengal police lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ananta Maharaj for making derogatory remarks against Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
Ananta is an ex-leader of Greater Cooch Behar People’s Association. In recent time, he has labelled the Indian freedom fighter as ‘war criminal’ and accused Netaji of ‘stealing British army’ to fight the colonial British government.
Despite being called out by the Bengali community, Ananta Maharaj remained defiant and claimed that he is talking on ‘facts’. He claimed, “I don’t speak without documents it is not me who is talking it is the records that are speaking.”
In the meantime, two Facebook users identified as Prakash Roy and Amit Rajbanshi posted AI generated derogatory images of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. One of them showed Ananta Maharaj , who hails from the Rajbanshi community, trampling the Indian freedom fighter under his feet.
One image showed a man peeing on the photo of Netaji. Another photo showcased police arresting Subhash Chandra Bose.
The remarks made by Ananta Maharaj was condemnded publicly by top BJP leaders, including party President Samik Bhattacharya. Yesterday, the West Bengal government revoked the Banga Bibhushan award given to him by Mamata Banerjee in February 2026.
While defending the decision, BJP Minister Agnimitra Paul stated, “Anant Maharaj is a Rajya Sabha MP, but he is not above Bengal’s identity. The statement he has made is his personal statement. It is neither the statement of our government nor of the party. Even in a personal statement, if he disrespects Netaji, it will not be tolerated.”
She further emphasised, “No Bengali living in Bengal will tolerate this. If anyone tries to take to the streets and do politics over such a statement, action will also be taken against them. It is also wrong to provoke such people. This will not be tolerated in Suvendu Adhikari’s rule.”
#WATCH | Kolkata | On West Bengal govt stripping BJP MP Ananta Maharaj of Banga Bibhushan award, West Bengal Minister Agnimitra Paul says, "Anant Maharaj is a Rajya Sabha MP, but he is not above Bengal's identity. The statement he has made is his personal statement. It is neither… pic.twitter.com/3Mfxn38DmD
— ANI (@ANI) August 14, 2026
In the meantime, Ananta Maharaj has apologised to the public in the face of mounting pressure from the government-in-charge.
মধ্যরাতে ক্ষমা চাইলেন অনন্ত। pic.twitter.com/juIxuX43su
— Tolamul Monitor (@TMCWatch) August 13, 2026
“I am saying this with respect to Netaji that if my comments have mentally hurt someone, then I am sorry from my hear,” he was seen reading a note on social media.
