Kolkata: West Bengal IPS officer Bushra Bano, who was serving as Additional Superintendent of Police in Kharagpur, has been transferred and posted as Deputy Commandant of the West Bengal Armed Police following controversy over a social media video in which she used Islamic greetings and expressions.
Bano posted the video on social media platform X on September 13, discussing her UPSC preparation and the role played by Aligarh Muslim University’s Residential Coaching Academy in helping her prepare for the civil services examination. During the video, she used expressions including “Assalamualaikum,” “Inshallah” and “Jazakallah,” which subsequently drew criticism from some social media accounts.
According to the report, the Hindu Legal Fund lodged a complaint with the West Bengal Home Secretary, objecting to the officer’s use of the expressions and questioning why she had not used phrases such as “Vande Mataram” or “Jai Hind.”
Other social media accounts, including The Jaipur Dialogues, also criticised Bano over her choice of greetings. Sudarshan News reportedly referred to the controversy using the term “UPSC Jihad.”
Bano was born in Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh, and studied at Aligarh Muslim University. She completed a PhD in Management Studies and qualified the National Eligibility Test for a Junior Research Fellowship. She subsequently worked as an assistant professor in Saudi Arabia before returning to India to pursue a career in the civil services.
Her transfer came days after the video was posted and amid the criticism surrounding it.
