Muslim IPS Officer Shunted In WB After Right Wing Group's Complaint
The cop later described her job profile and how Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) coached her in cracking the UPSC examination: Reports
KOLKATA: A young Muslim female IPS officer, Bushra Bano, has faced transfer a day after a Hindu outfit lodged a complaint with West Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari’s department, accusing her of not uttering 'Vande Mataram' and ‘Jai Hind’ during her speech in a viral video.
Ms Bano was posted as additional superintendent of police (SP) at Kharagpur in West Midnapore. The 2021-batch IPS officer was made deputy commandant (4th battalion) of the state armed police on Monday in a transfer order issued by the state home department, headed by Mr Adhikari.
Partha Ghosh, who was additional deputy commissioner of Chandannagar Police Commissionerate, replaced her as additional SP(Kharagpur). Controversy hit Ms Bano after she was seen introducing herself in her uniform while sitting at her office chamber with a greeting of ‘Assalamualaikum’ to the audience of an online session.
The cop later described her job profile and how Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) coached her in cracking the UPSC examination. She instantly became the target of right-wing groups in social media over the video.
One of them, Hindu Legal Fund, posted on X-handle on September 13, “Complaint filed with West Bengal Home Secretary regarding IPS Bushra Bano’s official video statement. She began with Assalamualaikum, used Inshallah, ended with Jazakallah — and did not use Vande Mataram or Jai Hind.”
It added, “A serving officer representing the Indian state should maintain neutrality and use national expressions in public communication. Seeking appropriate review and action.” Hailing from Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh, Ms Bano pursued her higher studies at AMU.
She later worked as assistant professor at Saudi Arabia before returning to India to prepare for the UPSC. Ms Bano ranked 277 and 234 in 2020 in 2018 and 2020 respectively.