'Her choice of words reflects her personal faith, not a rejection of the country she protects.'

That defence from former bureaucrat Ashish Joshi has become part of a growing controversy around West Bengal IPS officer Dr Bushra Bano, whose transfer came a day after a video of her using Islamic greetings and phrases triggered a backlash from Hindutva-linked social media accounts.

Bano, an IPS officer who has cleared the Union Public Service Commission examination twice, had previously worked in Saudi Arabia before choosing to serve in India.

The controversy centres on a video in which Bano opens her statement with 'Assalamualaikum', uses 'InshaAllah' while speaking, and signs off with 'JazakAllah'.

After the video began circulating online, Hindutva-linked handles criticised the officer, with some questioning why she had not used expressions such as 'Vande Mataram' or 'Jai Hind'.

The controversy was subsequently amplified by Sudarshan News, which framed the issue through the lens of 'UPSC Jihad'.

A website called Hindu Legal Fund also filed a complaint against Bano with the Home Secretary of West Bengal. Bano was transferred the following day.

The development has since triggered criticism from opposition politicians and others who have questioned whether an officer's use of expressions associated with her faith should become a reason for administrative action.

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra aimed at the development while drawing a comparison with the government's reported creation of a prayer room during the BRICS summit.

'One BJP govt showing off secular credentials at BRICS summit by creating ‘prayer room’, another sidelines Muslim woman IPS officer Dr Bushara Bano simply for saying ‘Assalamalaikum’ & ‘JazakAllah’: furthering hate spread by Godimedia TV,' Moitra said.

'We are with you Bushara,' she added.

Moitra had also raised a similar concern two weeks earlier, alleging that Muslim officers in West Bengal were being excluded from official events attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

At the time, she questioned the IPS and IAS associations over what she described as 'communal nonsense'.

Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi also called on the IPS Association to take note of Bano's case.

Pratapgarhi alleged that a 'hate-mongering TV channel' had first sensationalised the video, following which the officer was subjected to online trolling. 

He questioned why the state government had transferred Bano instead of standing by her.

'And instead of standing by her, the state government transferred her the very next day,' he said, before asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, 'What kind of India are you building, @narendramodi ji?'

He also tagged the IPS Association and asked, 'Are you watching this?'

The controversy has also brought an earlier case involving Uttar Pradesh police officer Anuj Chaudhary back into the conversation.

Chaudhary, who was then serving as Circle Officer in Sambhal, had participated in a religious Rath Yatra while in uniform and was seen carrying a mace.

He was later promoted to Additional Superintendent of Police in Firozabad.

Journalist Kavish Aziz pointed to the contrast between the two cases, saying, 'Bushra Bano was transferred for offering a greeting, while Anuj Chaudhary was promoted for joining a religious pilgrimage in uniform.'

Former bureaucrat Ashish Joshi also defended Bano's right to retain her personal identity while serving as a public official.

Highlighting that Bano had cleared the UPSC examination twice and had left a comfortable job in Saudi Arabia to serve the country, Joshi said her choice of expressions should be understood as an indication of her personal faith rather than as a rejection of India.

'India’s true strength is its unity in diversity,' Joshi said.

'In a land as vast and varied as India, this coexistence is not a weakness, it is our pride,' he added, concluding his message to Bano with, 'Shukriya for your service, Bushra! Jazakallah khair!'