Balurghat, March 31 TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday intensified his attack on the BJP and the Election Commission from Balurghat, alleging that the saffron party was trying to alter West Bengal's demographics by bringing in voters from outside the state ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.
Addressing a public meeting at the Balurghat Town Club Ground in support of TMC candidate Arpita Ghosh, Banerjee claimed that voters from NDA-ruled Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were being brought into different parts of Bengal to prevent local people from exercising their franchise.
"There is a conspiracy to change Bengal's demographics. Efforts are being made to ensure that the people of Bengal cannot exercise their democratic rights. Voters are being brought into different parts of Bengal from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh," he alleged.
Banerjee said he had already lodged a complaint with the Election Commission over the issue.
The allegations come amid an increasingly bitter campaign in the run-up to the assembly polls, with the TMC repeatedly accusing the BJP of trying to influence the electoral process, while the saffron camp has charged the ruling party with appeasement politics and large-scale irregularities in voter rolls.
The TMC leader also launched a fresh attack on the BJP's "double-engine government" pitch, claiming that Balurghat had emerged as the "biggest victim" of the slogan despite having both a BJP MP, Union minister Sukanta Majumdar, and an MLA for more than five years.
Banerjee, however, did not name Majumdar, a former state BJP president.
"No one has experienced the so-called double-engine government more than the people of Balurghat. For over five years, both the MP and the MLA here have been from the BJP. Yet they have not been able to bring even 10 paise of additional funds or development for this area," he said.
He challenged the BJP to place before the people a comparative "report card" of the work done by the Centre and the state government in Balurghat.
"Let people judge what our government has done for Balurghat and what the Modi government has done," Banerjee said.
Citing schemes such as Pathashree, Lakshmir Bhandar and the recently announced Yuva Sathi, Banerjee said the TMC government had delivered direct benefits to the people of the region while the Centre had failed to provide additional support.
He claimed that roads had been built under the state's Pathashree scheme and that beneficiaries under Yuva Sathi had received money in their bank accounts within 15 days of the announcement.
Banerjee also targeted Majumdar over his remarks on increasing the amount in the 'Lakshmir Bhandar', a financial assistance scheme for women, if the BJP is voted to power.
"I challenge him to first implement such a scheme in any BJP-ruled state where every woman in a family gets the benefit. If they can do that, I will stop campaigning for the TMC," he said.
Banerjee claimed that unlike in BJP-ruled states, all eligible women in West Bengal were receiving benefits under Lakshmir Bhandar.
He also highlighted projects such as the polytechnic college and the super-speciality hospital in Balurghat as examples of the state government's contribution to the region.
Turning to the economy, Banerjee attacked the Narendra Modi government over the rising prices of essential commodities and fuel.
"From milk, rice and edible oil to petrol, the prices of everything have gone through the roof. The country's economy is in ruins, and the BJP wants to starve the people of Bengal," he said.
In a football metaphor aimed at galvanising party workers ahead of the polls, Banerjee urged the people to ensure a sweeping defeat for the BJP.
"They must be defeated by 10-0 and pushed out of the field," he said.
The BJP has repeatedly accused the TMC government of failing to deliver development despite being in power in the state for over a decade. The ruling party, in turn, has maintained that the Centre has deprived Bengal of its legitimate dues and used central agencies and institutions for political purposes.