At a rally in Bankura district on Saturday, Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee mounted a sharp political offensive against the BJP, questioning whether central agencies and constitutional bodies could be used to blunt the ruling party in West Bengal.
Referring to recent Enforcement Directorate raids and the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls by the Election Commission, Abhishek framed the developments as part of a sustained pressure campaign.
“Does the BJP think it can stop us with the ED and the Election Commission? The TMC will never bow to any such pressure,” he said, addressing party workers and supporters.
Abhishek also invoked Bengal’s historical legacy, asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah to reflect on the state’s role in nation-building. “I want to tell Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to know the history of Bengal, the contributions of Swami Vivekananda, Raja Rammohan Roy, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Iswarchandra Vidyasagar in nation building.”
Positioning the Trinamool as the force that ended decades of Left rule, Abhishek said that without Mamata Banerjee, the CPI(M) would have continued to govern the state, a reference to the TMC’s 2011 Assembly election victory.
On the SIR exercise, Abhishek alleged that Bengalis were facing harassment and fear. He claimed that several people had died by suicide or fallen ill because of the process.
“Those who are responsible for the deaths will have to be dealt with politically,” he said. He also alleged that Bengali-speaking people were being labelled as Bangladeshis in some states.
The TMC leader accused the Centre of withholding West Bengal’s financial dues, pegging the amount at Rs 2 lakh-crore.
Turning to electoral accountability, he recalled that the BJP had won two Lok Sabha seats from Bankura district in 2019 and asked what the party had delivered since then.
“We have released a report card of the work done by the Trinamool Congress government in 15 years,” Abhishek said, adding that political contestation should rest on data related to roads, infrastructure, housing, water supply, healthcare and jobs.
“The Mamata Banerjee government is in power for 15 years and the Narendra Modi dispensation is at the helm at the Centre for 12 years, what have they done for Bankura district?” he asked, challenging the BJP to present its own report card.
Abhishek said the state government had curbed Maoist violence in the Jangalmahal region, which includes Bankura, and expanded access to education and healthcare.
He alleged that central funds under schemes such as the Jal Jeevan Mission, road projects and MGNREGA were being held back.
On employment, he pointed to delays in private coal mining projects, citing long permission processes involving multiple authorities, including the director general of mines safety in Ranchi.
He said the state has 133 hectares in the region where at least 18 mines could be developed.
“The Chief Minister’s Office has directed all departments concerned to ensure that permission processes are cleared within two months, by the end of March, which is expected to generate around 25,000 jobs,” he said.
Looking ahead to elections, Abhishek reminded the audience that the TMC had won only four of Bankura’s 12 Assembly seats in 2021, with the BJP taking the rest.
He urged voters to back all TMC candidates this time. “You will get your rights if TMC wins and you will be deprived of those if the BJP wins,” he said.
He also referred to a remark allegedly made by a BJP leader about women beneficiaries of the Lokkhir Bhandar scheme being “kept locked.” Abhishek responded by saying the verdict of the ballot would speak.
He said the state spends around Rs 27,000 crore every year on the scheme, under which women receive Rs 1,000 per month.
“As long as the TMC government is there, this benefit will continue; this is our commitment,” he said, adding that the election results would show that the mothers of Bengal would “lock the saffron party.”