Centre ‘blocking Bengal’s funds’: Signature campaign from Apr 24

Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee at his rally in Bankura on Wednesday said that a signature campaign will be started from April 24 and he would personally visit Delhi with 1 crore letters of the people seeking state’s dues.

“We are starting a new initiative — Shoi Shakho Shongroho Abhiyaan on April 24. We are asking people to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also to Union Rural Development & Panchayati Raj Minister Giriraj Singh, seeking their rightful dues.

“Our Anchal Sabhapati will then collect these letters and next month, along with over 1 crore letters, I will personally go to Delhi and sit outside Krishi Bhavan and see if the Centre can shut me out. We will see if the central government has the guts to deny the demands of over 1 crore people of Bengal,” Banerjee said addressing a huge gathering at Onda.

He added: “BJP is taking your money and giving it to Gujarat. They claim that there has been a misappropriation of funds in the Awas Yojana. We have sent the Centre a list of 11.36 thousand names. If they find even one instance of wrongdoing, I will never come to Bankura to seek your vote. I challenge BJP leaders to find any wrongdoing and if they cannot, then they better release our rightful dues.”

Attacking the Centre for its role to criticize the state government for naming schemes, Banerjee said: “I want the people to tell me, is it wrong to name schemes? This stadium where we are hosting the meeting has been made by the Bengal government. Why is it wrong to have schemes that are being run in Bengal be named after the state? Why should the name be after the Prime Minister and not the region where it is being held?”

“TMC has been steadfastly raising the issue of Bengal’s rightful dues being withheld by the Centre. Just in Bankura, over 8,52,000 families have job cards. Today, over 18 lakh people are affected by the 100 days work scheme in Bankura alone. Across Bengal, over 20 lakh families are being harassed because the Centre is not giving them their wages. The people should think about these issues before voting in the upcoming Panchayat Elections,” Banerjee added.