JALPAIGURI: Bamboo dewa, chamkano (give bamboo in the rear) …. Street lingo that had till now been restricted to informal addas have made their way to the chief minister’s lexicon. Mamata Banerjee has started using them in public speeches possibly to connect with men who throng her gatherings. Little does she care that Bengal traditionally bears the legacy of a parliamentary democracy that requires lawmakers to mind their language and even use the word “untrue” in place of “false.”

However, Mamata, who recently used the slang shala at a party meet only to retract it and apologize immediately, went beyond the acceptable mode of public speech at a gathering in Jalpaiguri on Wednesday. A serious issue she was pointing to got lost in the din that followed.

Upset with CPM for approaching Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Saradha probe, Mamata chose to hit out in a language hardly ever used by a CM and in sheer bad taste. “Nijera 34 bochhor khamatai chhilo. Kichhu korte pareni, aar jara korche tader bamboo diye berachhe. Bamboo jangale hoi, ghar bari toirir kaje lage, jane na bamboo jake tara kore she palate path pai na. (They were in power for 34 years, but could do nothing. Instead they are after those who are doing something.) A literal translation of the latter part of her comment isn’t possible. “Amader chamkale amra garjai...” was also part of her speech.

Use of such street lexicon is nothing new in the ruling Trinamool though. State transport minister Madan Mitra had said while warning a police inspector, “Kaner gorai debo na...(Will box your ears). Even Sonali Guha used such slangs when she was in the opposition. But as deputy speaker of the assembly, she now minds her tongue.

What got lost in the language controversy is an important point that the CM made at the Jalpaiguri meeting. Mamata warned people against developments like the Khagragarh blast and asked them to inform police in case they were suspicious about anybody.