Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Apr 9: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that a regime change in West Bengal after the State Assembly elections had become an indelible reality, while the Trinamool Congress supremo and the chief minister Mamata Banerjee described the coming elections as “a fight for the survival of the people and the existence of Bengal.”
Addressing election rallies, Ms Banerjee urged voters to remain vigilant and participate actively in the elections to safeguard the rights and identity of Bengal’s people. The TMC supremo alleged that people are being harassed in BJP-ruled States for speaking Bengali and accused the party of terming the language as foreign while branding Bengali speakers as infiltrators.
The Prime Minister addressed a political rally in Asansol going all guns blazing against the ruling TMC, accusing it of lawlessness and unleashing ‘maha jungle raj’ by referring to the Bagtui carnage of 2022, in which around 10 women and children were burnt alive in Birbhum district.
Addressing an election rally in Birbhum district, he alleged the Trinamool Congress’ slogan of ‘Maa-Mati-Manush’ (mother, land, people) has become nothing more than rhetoric. “Cottage industry has been declining in West Bengal, while the TMC has turned making crude bombs into a cottage industry,” Modi said.
Mr Modi claimed that entire Bengal now desired a change. “This is the voice of every single person in Bengal,” he said. He said there was a time when Hindus were threatened with genocide through the issuance of red posters. “Today, the TMC is doing exactly the same; once again, Hindus are being intimidated in the name of a specific community.
“The people of Bengal want their land to remain secure, their faith to remain secure, their livelihoods to remain secure, and the future of their children to remain secure. And that is why, on the 23rd of April, it will be the moment of decision for the future. I assure you: it is the BJP that has secured India’s western borders, and it is the BJP that will secure India’s eastern borders,” he said.
Mr Modi further added that for the past fifteen years, TMC has perpetrated atrocities against their own people and have weaponised fear, however, the TMC leadership has forgotten that this very machinery of fear and terror was previously wielded by the Leftists. “The people of Bengal had defeated the terror of the Leftists back then, and now, those very same people are bringing an end to the reign of fear imposed by the TMC.”
Regarding the events in Malda, in their state of panic, the TMC has committed a monumental blunder. TMC members are now hurling abuses at the nation’s security forces, specifically the CRPF. The patriotic people of Bengal will surely give a fitting reply to this. I want to make it absolutely clear to the TMC: they can no longer prevent the rule of law from being established in Bengal. The true rule of law in Bengal will commence after the 4th of May. After the 4th of May, every act of hooliganism and lawlessness will be held to account,” he said.
PM Modi said from the distressing incidents involving RG Kar Medical College to the situation in Sandeshkhali—the TMC consistently and openly stands in support of rapists. “The women of Bengal today find themselves unable to feel safe or secure. Bengal has surged ahead of all other regions in terms of reported acid attack cases… If there is any single party committed to granting women their rights, that party is the BJP,” he said.
PM Modi also added that the Central government endeavoured to improve medical facilities by expanding the ECI Hospital and despite numerous hurdles created by the TMC Government, the BJP-led NDA Government at the Centre has consistently pushed forward initiatives for the development of Bengal.
“This election is about liberating ourselves from the rule of the mafia, and this task can be accomplished solely by the BJP-led NDA government. Over the past several decades, Bengal has placed its trust in every political party, first the Congress, then the Left Front, and subsequently the TMC. However, every single one of them did the exact same thing: they betrayed the people of Bengal, trampled upon their dreams, and crushed their future…
“The people of Asansol and Paschim Bardhaman have witnessed how, despite thousands of hurdles created by the TMC, the Central Government remains steadfastly committed to the development of this region. To boost industrialisation here, more than Rs 45,000 crore has been invested in the expansion of the steel plant. Furthermore, the Durgapur-Haldia gas pipeline section has also been dedicated to the nation… To strengthen connectivity in this region, the Asansol-Bokaro train service has been launched. This region has also received two Vande Bharat trains and two Amrit Bharat trains. Under the ‘Amrit Bharat Station Scheme,’ the Andal Railway Station is currently being modernised. Additionally, a ‘Gati Shakti Cargo Terminal’ of the Indian Railways has been commissioned within the Asansol Division,” he said.
“Land grabbing by infiltrators under the TMC regime has reached dangerous proportions. Infiltrators are usurping the jobs of locals by accepting contract work for less money. They will be deported and their facilitators jailed after the BJP comes to power in Bengal,” he said. Modi charged the TMC with insulting adivasis, asserting that they have not spared even the country’s President who represents the Dalit community.
Alleging that TMC stole MGNREGA funds, the PM urged the people to elect the BJP. “We will implement the VB-G RAM G scheme in Bengal, transfer money directly to beneficiary accounts,” he said.
The TMC supremo alleged the BJP had got over 90 lakh voters’ names deleted during the SIR exercise to grab power in the State and asserted that her party would still win the upcoming Assembly elections. Addressing a public rally at Minakhan in North 24 Parganas district, she said the Trinamool Congress would move court to ensure that those deleted from the electoral rolls were reinstated.
The TMC supremo alleged that people are being harassed in BJP-ruled States for speaking Bengali and accused the party of terming the language as foreign while branding Bengali speakers as infiltrators. At a separate rally in Palta in the same district, she claimed, “BJP is paying people ₹500 each to take part in its rallies.” Warning the saffron party leadership, she said, “The end of the BJP is inevitable from August 2026.”
She also alleged, “They (BJP) are getting the Delimitation Bill passed to divide Bengal into three parts.” In an apparent reference to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, whom she referred to as ‘Mota Bhai’, Ms Banerjee accused him of intimidating people through probe agencies. Ms Banerjee reiterated that her party would continue to fight politically and legally to protect the rights of voters and the integrity of the state’s electoral process.
