SANTINIKETAN (WB: Union Home Minister Amit Shah, on the second day of his two-day visit to the state, visited the residence of a ‘Baul’ singer (sufi genre folk music of Bengal) here to have a typical Bengali lunch.
Shah listened with rapt attention as Basudeb Das Baul and his family sang a popular folk song ‘Tomay Hrid Majhare Rakhbo’ (will keep you at the bottom of our hearts) with ‘ektara’ (one-stringed musical instrument) after the BJP heavyweight arrived at the baul’s modest residence, ‘Manohardham Kutir’, in Ratanpally area of Santiniketan in Birbhum district.
Shah, accompanied by senior leaders Kailash Vijayvargiya, Mukul Roy, Dilip Ghosh, Rahul Sinha, Anupam Hazra, had lunch at Baul’s residence, sitting on the floor of the house.
Shah savoured the delicacies – ‘palong saak’, ‘alu posto’, ‘begun bhaja’, ‘nolen gurer payes’ and ‘nalen gurer rosogolla’ – along with other BJP leaders.
Shah also offered puja at the family Shiva temple.
Das said, “we are privileged that such an important person visited our residence. We are overjoyed”.
Tight security arrangements were made and members of the media and other party leaders were kept outside the house, and Shah’s security personnel checked the premises repeatedly.
On Saturday, the BJP leader had lunch at the house of a farmer in Paschim Medinipur district as part of his exercise to strengthen relations with the common people ahead of the assembly elections in the state, due in April-May next year.
During his November visit to the state, he had lunch at the residence of a tribal BJP worker in Bankura and the house of a matua community member in North 24 Parganas. (AGENCIES)
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