Clarifying that she had not used the word referendum, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said on Friday that she had used the word “gana-vote” in an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) rally on Thursday.
Her use of the word created controversy with BJP leaders alleging that she was seeking “foreign intervention.”
Ms. Banerjee addressed a press conference in Kolkata following a week long agitation programme challenging CAA and NRC.
“I said, they must do an opinion poll, in our language “gana-vote”, opinion poll, and let us see if people accept it [CAA] or not,” Ms. Banerjee said.
In Thursday’s rally the Chief Minister had used the word “gana-vote”.
The dictionary meaning of ‘gana-vote’ is plebiscite and neither referendum nor opinion poll.
It creates controversy as there is clear difference between three words– plebiscite and referendum in English. While in case of referendum the government needs to act upon it, in case of plebiscite, the government does not.
What perhaps Ms. Banerjee meant was plebiscite but said “opinion poll.” The media also reported it as referendum, which it is not.
