TMC faces heat as MLA caught talking on phone during national anthem

With a Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA being caught on camera talking on her cell phone while the national anthem was being played, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took a swing at the Mamata Banerjee-led party saying the entire development was ironic, as the National Anthem had emerged from West Bengal itself.

Branding the incident as unfortunate, BJP leader Nalin Kohli said that more than the law, what was important was respecting the national sentiment.

"If we do not show respect to our own national anthem and flag, then what kind of a country are we. And it's even more ironical happening from a TMC leader because after all, it is Rabindranath Tagoreji who penned it. And the national anthem emerges from Bengal," he said.

In an incident signifying embarrassment for the TMC, party MLA Vaishali Dalmiya was caught on camera speaking over the phone while the National Anthem was being played.

The TMC leader, who was present at a sports event in Howrah, West Bengal on Sunday was busy attending phone calls while the National Anthem was being played.

Dalmiya, who is the daughter of late Jagmohan Dalmiya, former president of International Cricket Council (ICC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), was attending Commissioner Cup, a Football tournament organised by Belur Police Station.

This is not the first incident when a politician came under the radar for talking over the phone while the national anthem is being played, as earlier, former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Farooq Abdullah faced a huge backlash for talking on the phone while the national anthem was being played.

Meanwhile, in Kerala at least six people were detained for allegedly showing disrespect to the national anthem and in another incident, a Kerala writer was charged with sedition over a Facebook post that was allegedly disrespectful to the national anthem.