Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday went hammer and tongs at the “proxy BJP government” in poll-bound Meghalaya and positioned her party as the only credible alternative to the saffron camp.

The call to the people of Meghalaya to uproot the National People’s Party-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government, in which the BJP is a constituent, came on a day the Election Commission declared the schedule of Assembly polls in three north-eastern states. Tripura will go to the polls first on February 16, followed by Nagaland and Meghalaya on February 27.

All the three states will be having single-phase polls, while the counting of votes will take place on March 2.

Mamata repeatedly attacked the ruling coalition at a well-attended poll rally in North Garo Hills — perceived to be a stronghold of Trinamul — where she was also joined by her nephew Abhishek Banerjee.

After registering a resounding victory in Bengal in the 2021 Assembly polls, Trinamul — under the leadership of Abhishek — has been aggressively trying to expand its footprints beyond the state and the northeast has been the key focus of this effort.

In her 22-minute address, she mentioned the success stories of her government in Bengal before launching a bitter attack on the government of Meghalaya, led by Conrad Sangma of NPP, and calling it a “a proxy government” for the BJP. She said that this government was “taking dictation” from Delhi and also Guwahati, in a veiled reference to Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

“If you want to change this corrupt and discredited government, then there is no alternative to TMC. In Meghalaya, you have a proxy government of the centre and Guwahati. The BJP has two faces.... Double engine means they will say something before the election and do something else after polls,” said Mamata.

She revealed at a press meet later that once she had requested somebody “higher up in Meghalaya’s dispensation” for some police force for panchayat polls in her state. The officer, she claimed, told her that he has to seek permission from Delhi.

“Through this example, she tried to drive home the point of a proxy BJP government being in place in Meghalaya,” said a source close to her.

The reference to Biswa Sarma, believed to be the chief strategist of the BJP in the Northeast, continued. “You tell me why there will be de facto PM from Guwahati and why he will run the Northeast? Why they can’t sort out the land dispute issue,” she said without naming anybody.

Accusing the BJP of wanting to win elections with “ money power, muscle power and agency power”, Mamata tried to build a local connect by positioning Trinamul as a caring party and to “remember” that the three leaves in the party symbol is “just like the Garo, Khasi and Jaintia” people, the three important tribes of the state.

She highlighted growing unemployment and alleged discrimination in the allocation of Central funds to non BJP-ruled states.