Bhubaneswar, Dec 31 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of using inflammatory language and issuing veiled threats against Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his recent visit to the state.
Addressing a press conference here, the BJP condemned the West Bengal Chief Minister's remarks, describing them as an assault on democratic norms and a desperate attempt to protect what it termed her “vote bank” of illegal infiltrators.
BJP MP and party’s national spokesperson Sambit Patra referred to recent comments attributed to CM Banerjee, in which she allegedly described HM Shah as “dangerous” and compared him to hostile figures, claiming that he was hiding in a hotel and could move freely in West Bengal only because of her.
Patra said: “We have also seen how Mamata Banerjee has threatened the Home Minister of India in words that cannot even be imagined. Mamata Banerjee said that ‘you (referring to HM Shah) are hiding in a hotel. If we want, you can’t step out of the hotel. You are lucky that we allowed you to come out of the hotel’.”
“Instead of addressing the serious security concerns raised by the Home Minister, the Chief Minister has resorted to name-calling and issuing threats,” the BJP spokesperson added.
The party alleged that Banerjee’s administration has consistently obstructed the Home Ministry’s efforts to secure the India-Bangladesh border, particularly by refusing to provide land required for fencing.
The BJP accused the Trinamool Congress of “abetting infiltration” as a deliberate policy to alter the state’s demography.
The party further claimed that while the Centre is committed to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to ensure that only Indian citizens are allowed to vote, Banerjee has threatened mass protests and “riots” to block the process.
“Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee knows that her political ground is slipping. By threatening to skin opponents alive and by allegedly inciting violence against central agencies, she is showing that under her rule, jihadis and rioters are safer than common citizens,” the BJP national spokesperson remarked during the briefing.
Sambit Patra also referred to incidents of post-poll violence in West Bengal, alleging that more than 300 BJP workers have been killed under the Trinamool Congress regime, and claimed that the state government had effectively given a “certificate” to violent practices.
“The Home Minister’s visit was about restoring the dignity of Bengal and its women, who have been victims of horrific atrocities in places like Sandeshkhali. Mamata Banerjee’s response -- demanding the Home Minister’s resignation and issuing veiled threats -- will not deter the BJP from its resolve to secure a two-thirds majority in the 2026 Assembly elections and end what it calls ‘Jungle Raj’,” Patra said.
The BJP reiterated its commitment to the people of West Bengal, asserting that a future BJP government would put an end to illegal infiltration through the eastern borders.
Patra concluded by saying that the people of Bengal are ready to replace “fear and corruption with good governance” and will deliver a “befitting reply” to the Trinamool Congress in the upcoming elections.
--IANS
gyan/pgh