Modi afraid of defeat: CM

Suri/Durgapur: Coming down heavily on Narendra Modi, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee said his body language clearly shows he is suffering from a fear of defeat. She reiterated that the BJP will not get a single seat in Bengal in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.

"The more Modi comes to Bengal for his campaigns, the better it is for the Trinamool Congress as it will then get more seats in the polls," she said adding that the people are sick and tired of Modi and wants a change.

Banerjee addressed two political meetings at Suri and Durgapur respectively on Thursday.

Referring to an interview where Modi said that she sends kurtas to him, she said: "I send gifts to many important dignitaries. It is our courtesy. This has nothing to do with politics. I send kurtas produced by the weavers associated with Biswa Bangla stores to several people. I also send mangoes to many. He is so shameless that he has said this during an interview," she said.

"Marketing a gesture of courtesy is not conducive to democracy," Banerjee added and said she normally wrote letters on birthdays to everyone. "PM Modi has said I send him kurtas. Where is the problem? We send gifts to all during Durga Puja," she maintained.

Referring to a well-known story from the Panchatantra, she said: "A rat approached a hermit and complained that he felt threatened by a jackal. The hermit immediately transformed the rat into a jackal to save him from being killed. Subsequently, the hermit transformed the rat into other animals including a lion. Once he became a lion he tried to attack the hermit. The hermit immediately brought him back to a rat." Drawing a parallel with Modi, she said: "He will be brought back to a 'chaiwalla' after the elections."

Terming Modi a "liar whose sole business is to misinform people" she said: "He is so shameless that during an election meeting held on Wednesday he had said that I do not allow Durga Puja to take place in Bengal. Lakhs of community Durga Pujas are held throughout the state. You should do your homework before making such comments," he said.

Banerjee further stated: "It has become Modi's habit to come to Bengal and call me a goon. I have fought against the CPI(M)'s goons and I am not scared of Modi," she said. "We have not forgotten the communal riots in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh and the killings at Godhra. It is really amazing that a man whose hands are blood-soaked, he is now calling me a goon."

The TMC supremo maintained that BJP leaders are coming to Bengal as they have realised that "they will lose in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and in the South Indian states. They will get zero seats in Bengal."

Banerjee maintained that despite deploying crores of Central Forces, "BJP cannot win the election as people are with the Trinamool Congress."

She said in 10 seats in which the Lok Sabha elections have been held in North Bengal, the Trinamool Congress will win all of them. "This time, we will get 42 out of 42. BJP leaders are like migratory birds. They come only before the elections and vanish like camphor after the polls are over."

She urged people to cast their votes in favour of party nominees — Asit Mal and Shatabdi Roy in Bolpur and Birbhum seats and Mumtaz Sanghamita in Burdwan-Durgapur seat.