BJP trying to create disturbance in Bengal ahead of 2024 polls: Mamata

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday made a startling revelation in the Assembly that the BJP has chalked out an agenda to divide the people along their castes and religious lines to gain political mileage in the Lok Sabha elections scheduled to take place next year.

Referring to Union Home minister Amit Shah’s meeting in Delhi on Tuesday night with BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar and Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari, Banerjee said ‘planning’ was done in Delhi in presence of tall BJP leaders from Bengal on how to create a rift among people.

“The main agenda discussed in the meeting was how to divide society along religious lines ahead of the Panchayat elections. The state BJP leaders were told to highlight crimes against women, SCs and STs to get their sympathy. The main objective of the move was to defame the Bengal government. Communities like Rajbangshis, Matuas, tribals and Gorkhas have been targetted,” Banerjee said. She was speaking against the adjournment motion proposal brought by the BJP in the Assembly on the issue of post-Panchayat poll violence.

Banerjee also said: “In the meeting, the state BJP leaders were asked to create a situation so that the Bengal government can be shown in bad light. Defaming Bengal is their target. This will also help to suppress the Manipur issue. Why are you so nervous over Manipur violence?”

She further alleged that BJP will circulate fake news to malign the state government. “Around 10 teams have been sent to conduct sting operations. It was all decided in the Delhi meeting. They (BJP) will prepare fake news and videos and circulate them in the state,” Banerjee said, taking a potshot at the BJP leaders. Banerjee also hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying: “You are touring various places and earning certificates in exchange of gifts when states like Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland are on fire. Before BJP MPs/MLAs say something against us, they should meet the PM and remind him about the violence in Manipur.”

Incidentally, the Union Home minister held a late-night meeting on Tuesday with Adhikari and Majumdar a few hours before the BJP fact-finding committee submitted its report on Bengal Panchayat election violence to party national president JP Nadda. Sources said Adhikari and Majumdar submitted a report to the Central leadership focusing on the prevailing law and order situation in the state.

During her speech in the Assembly, Banerjee hit out at Adhikari saying that during Assembly election counting, the latter ensured loadshedding in Nandigram and the whole result was changed. A specific case has been filed in the Calcutta High Court which is pending. BJP MLAs, including Adhikari, walked out when Banerjee raised the counting issue in Nandigram Assembly constituency. BJP brought adjournment motion on post-poll violence which has, however, been refuted by Banerjee who claimed that trouble broke out in seven places which include districts like Cooch Behar, North Dinajpur, Malda, Murshidabad, South 24-Parganas and Nadia. Elections were held in all the remaining districts in a peaceful manner.

Citing data, Banerjee said during the Left Front regime, 59 people died in the Panchayat elections in 1993. No figure was found on the 1998 elections while in 2003, around 79 people died in violence. In 2008, around 39 died on the day of election. In 2013, around 14 people died on the day of poll while 25 died in pre-poll violence, Banerjee stated.

She said there were 80,000 Central forces in the Panchayat election this year while the state forces were only 70,000. “What were the Central forces doing?” Banerjee asked.