Kolkata, 08 March (H.S.):

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Sunday criticised the West Bengal government over alleged protocol lapses during President Droupadi Murmu’s recent visit to north Bengal, accusing it of showing disrespect to the country’s first citizen.

In a statement, the student organisation alleged that proper permission was not granted for the 9th International Santal Conference, organised by members of the Santal community, which Murmu attended during her visit.

ABVP claimed that due to the lack of clear permission, the venue for the event had to be changed four times, calling the situation “unfortunate”.

“It is extremely regrettable that during the visit of the President, who is the first citizen of the country, proper protocol was not followed,” the organisation said, adding that the episode reflected administrative failure and indifference on the part of the state government.

ABVP national general secretary Virendra Singh Solanki said such incidents hurt the spirit of Indian democracy and alleged that the situation had arisen due to political rivalry.

The organisation also demanded that accountability be fixed for the alleged disrespect shown to the President during the visit, the statement added.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey