Prime Minister Narendra Modi being garlanded during a public meeting, at Krishnanagar in Nadia district, Saturday, March 2, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
Krishnanagar (WB): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday stepped up the attack against the Mamata Banerjee government, labelling it as being synonymous with "oppression, dynasty politics, and betrayal" and claimed that the TMC has achieved a "mastery" in turning schemes into scams.
Speaking at a rally in Krishnanagar in Nadia district, Modi outlined an ambitious target for the BJP to win all the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state, emphasising the correlation between West Bengal's progress and that of the nation.
In the 2019 general elections, the saffron party had bagged 18 seats in the state.
Modi rallied supporters to "ensure the proliferation of the lotus", the electoral symbol of the BJP, in every Lok Sabha constituency in the state.
Referring to the incidents in Sandeshkhali, where women have levelled charges of sexual abuse against TMC leaders, Modi accused the state government of abandoning the aggrieved women and instead siding with the accused.
"People of West Bengal are disappointed by the way the state government is functioning. They have repeatedly given such huge mandates to the TMC with great expectations, but the party has become another name for tyranny, dynasty politics and betrayal. The TMC's priority is corruption and nepotism, not development of the state," he said.
Taking a dig, Modi articulated an acronym for the TMC, asserting it now epitomises Tu, Main, aur Corruption hi Corruption (you, me, and corruption).
He lambasted the party for appropriating central schemes, branding those as their own, and fostering a culture of "graft and favouritism".
"The TMC has tainted the image of West Bengal. It has achieved mastery in turning every scheme into a scam. They put a sticker on central schemes and call it theirs. They don't hesitate in snatching from the poor and depriving them," he said.
Modi claimed that tolabaj (extortionists) of the TMC "call the shots" in West Bengal and "wield undue influence in the state, obstructing the implementation of central schemes".
"In the coming years, the BJP will create innumerable opportunities for investments and employment in the country and the state. To ensure this, you must mark your contribution in the Lok Sabha elections by ensuring the victory of the BJP. The lotus must bloom in all the 42 seats of West Bengal," he said.
Thanking people for turning up in large numbers at the rally, Modi said, “It is giving a clear message, ‘Ei baar, NDA Sarkar 400 paar' (this time we will cross the 400 seats)."
Referring to the incidents in Sandeshkhali, Modi lamented the "state government's indifference to the pleas for justice from affected women".
"Despite invoking the slogan of 'Maa Mati Manush' (Mother, Land, People) for electoral gains, the TMC administration has failed to safeguard the well-being of mothers and sisters of West Bengal," he remarked.
He criticised the state's law enforcement agencies, suggesting that criminals wield undue influence over the administration's decisions.
"The situation in West Bengal is such that the criminals, and not the police, decide when to get arrested," he alleged.
In an apparent reference to the arrest of Shajahan Sheikh, Modi said the state government did not want the culprit of Sandeshkhali to be arrested, "but when the women power of West Bengal stood up as Durga and the BJP workers stood with them, the state government was forced to bow down."
Although previous speakers such as Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar and Suvendu Adhikari, touched upon the issue of former Krishnanagar MP Mahua Moitra, who was expelled from Lok Sabha in a ‘cash for query' case, Modi did not speak on the issue.
He criticised Mamata Banerjee's administration for obstructing the populace from reaping the benefits of central government initiatives.
"A few days ago, AIIMS in Kalyani was dedicated to the nation. However, the TMC is not happy with AIIMS at Kalyani, as the West Bengal government has questioned the lack of prior permission and environmental clearance," Modi stated.
He condemned the TMC dispensation for granting free rein to hooligans by party affiliates and land mafias while impeding environmental permits.
"In West Bengal, TMC's thugs and land mafia enjoy unrestricted liberty for unruly behaviour, they don't need any permission. But we need permission from those goons. The government is creating blockades in environmental clearances," Modi asserted.
Highlighting the disparity between central government assistance and its utilisation in West Bengal, Modi lamented, "The Central government extends medical aid worth Rs 5 lakh to the underprivileged, but the TMC government obstructs Bengal residents from benefiting from this initiative of the central government."
Modi said in the last two days, projects worth Rs 22,000 crore have been unveiled in the state.
Reacting strongly to the prime minister's allegations, TMC leader Santanu Sen said, "The allegations are baseless. He was speaking about corruption but did the BJP suspend Suvendu Adhikari, named in the CBI FIR, from the party?”
State Women and Child Development Minister Shashi Panja accused Modi of visiting the state only when elections approached and claimed that Modi cannot see corruption anywhere in the country beyond the opposition parties like TMC.
“Bengal gets to see the PM only when elections are round the corner. He came during the 2021 assembly polls; He is again coming back before the ensuing general elections. But that will not serve the purpose," Panja said.