Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday mounted an aggressive counter-offensive on Amit Shah, demanding his resignation as Union home minister for allegedly failing to curb terrorist and subversive activities in India and unleashing horrors on the people by way of the contentious special intensive revision (SIR).
Without naming Shah even once, the chief minister said that had it not been for Bengal’s culture of being hospitable even to those who do not wish it well, the home minister would have had to stay put in his hotel in Calcutta during his ongoing three-day visit.
Barely a half-hour after Shah’s fierce attack on Mamata at a news meet in Sector V, she came out all guns blazing at a rally 175km away in Borjora, Bankura.
“Someone representing misrule has arrived in Bengal. Whenever elections are upon us, the Duryodhans, the Dushasans... the Shakunis start showing up. Their sight is enough to evoke fear... have they come to cause more harm again?” said Mamata.
She referred to an RTI reply to a Trinamool MP by the Centre that there were barely 11,000 infiltrators in the entire country in direct contradiction to the BJP’s claims regarding Bengal. “They claim there are infiltrators in Bengal alone. None in Kashmir. Then who carried out the Pahalgam attack, you? You say infiltrators exist only in Bengal, then what happened in Delhi? Who was responsible for the blast, you?”
She accused the BJP and poll panel of working together to have legitimate names deleted rampantly by misusing AI-powered tools.
“They are going about boasting that names of 1.5 crore people from Bengal will be deleted from voter lists. Why? Last time (before the 2021 state polls) they came at us, with war cries of “200-paar” and failed miserably. This time they are misusing the SIR... with his stooge, Vanish Kumar (referring to chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar). So many people have lost their lives already (in the SIR process),” she said.
Infiltration was one of the five main issues Shah fired on Tuesday to attack Mamata, who issued rebuttals to all.
On her alleged reluctance to give land for central infrastructure and security apparatus, Mamata asked: “If we did not give land, how did the Tarkeshwar-Bankura railway line happen? How is the ECL working in Jamuria, Raniganj, Asansol? Who gave the land for the Andal airport?”
“There is a limit to lying. We gave land in Bongaon, Petrapole, Ghojadanga. I am not against the BSF or the CISF.... Complete the work on the land that we gave you. Why have you left them unused? Do the work, then I will give more again,” she said.
Regarding corruption allegations and prison time for leaders, she said if Trinamool leaders are corrupt, she promptly takes action, but the criminals in the BJP go unpunished.
“You caught four of our ministers, kept them in prison for years. Could you keep them there? You are releasing your people who murder and rape,” she said, adding that Shah shouldn’t bring up nepotism when his son, Jay Shah, was made the most influential person in the cricket
administration.
On minority appeasement, Mamata said she didn’t care what they said as her conscience was clear. “I was born to work for the people without discrimination. I will work for all people of all religions throughout my life,” she said.
In response to Shah’s two-thirds majority (196 seats in the 294-seat Assembly) claim, Mamata said: “Last time, he said 200-paar. They went pogarpar (nowhere close). This time, he says two-thirds.”
“I say, last time you got kochu (nothing). This time, you will get ghnechu (zilch),” she added, going on to attack the “central deprivation of Bengal” by way of an alleged economic blockade.
Later in the day, Mamata’s nephew and heir-apparent Abhishek Banerjee called Shah the “most useless” Union home minister in the history of Independent India.
Mamata instructed the Trinamool rank and file to set aside everything else for now and focus on the SIR and state polls. “All winter picnics, festivals are secondary now. Only one festival, the festival to save democracy,” she said.
“This time too, khela hobey (the game is on, her campaign slogan for 2021). The name of that khela will be phataphati (explosive or awesome).... Nobody will be afraid,” the Trinamool chairperson said.
Mamata said Bengal would show the way, implying her fourth consecutive term as chief minister, for the entire nation from 2026, to have the BJP ousted from power at the Centre. “Never, ever vote for the BJP. They deliberately mislead by misinterpreting Hinduism... do they even understand the Gita? Dharma means humanity and peace, not hatred. Your dharma is divisive and destructive,” she said.