West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday called upon the Central Government to address the omission of Rabindranath Tagore's name on plaques commemorating the UNESCO World Heritage Site status of Santiniketan. Banerjee expressed her concern over the absence of Tagore's name on these plaques, considering it a grave disrespect to the Nobel laureate and the founder of Visva-Bharati.
"Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore created a world heritage site (now recognised by UNESCO) at Santiniketan - Visva Bharati, but the current institutional authorities there have arranged site memorial plaques on this occasion which display even the Vice Chancellor's name but not the name of Gurudev," Banerjee said in an X post.
She further highlighted that such an omission not only insulted Tagore but also diminished the anti-colonial heritage that India's founding fathers worked tirelessly to establish. Banerjee urged the central government to promptly remove this display, which she described as a manifestation of self-exhibitionism, and to pay the tribute that the country rightfully owes to Gurudev.
The controversy erupted when marble plaques were placed on the Santiniketan campus. These plaques prominently featured the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who also serves as the Chancellor of Visva Bharati, and the Vice-Chancellor, Bidyut Chakrabarty, while conspicuously omitting Tagore's name.
Santiniketan was accorded UNESCO World Heritage status on September 17, a recognition that celebrates the uniqueness of the institution established by the renowned poet and philosopher, Rabindranath Tagore. It stands apart from the British colonial architectural norms of the early 20th century and European modernism.
Following the placement of these plaques, the Visva Bharati University Faculty Association (VBUFA), a teaching staff organization at the university, sent emails expressing their displeasure to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is the Chancellor, President Droupadi Murmu, the Visitor, and West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose. In these emails, the omission of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore's name was deemed an insult, and the removal of the university's Vice-Chancellor was demanded.