What did Amit Shah say about holiday on Durga Puja in Bengal and why the claim is false? | FACT CHECK

A claim made by Union Minister Amit Shah at an election rally in West Bengal's Serampore, on May 15 is misleading and false.

Shah said 'Mamata Banerjee opposes the Ram Mandir. She does not give permission for Durga Visarjan but gives holidays for Muslim workers on Ramzan. We do not have a problem with that, give holidays if you wish. But we want an answer as to why you don’t grant holidays for our Durga
Puja as well? Why this discrimination?'

Fact-checking website Boom on May 22, 2024 confirmed that the state government grants holidays for Durga Puja and other religious occasions. The state government also follows public holidays that include Good Friday, Eid-UI-Fitr, Id-Ud-Zoha, Muharram and Christmas. Boom verified the list of holidays from the official website of the state finance department.

In 2017, the dates of Durga immersion and Muharram had coincided. The West Bengal government had disallowed Durga immersion on the day of Muharram, despite the state's High Court ruling that allowed both the immersion and the Muharram procession to take place on the same day, provided they followed different
routes and ensured peace.

((With inputs from BOOM as part of the Shakti Collective))