Barrackpore (WB), April 7 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her government of pursuing "politics of appeasement", encouraging infiltration for vote-bank reasons, and pushing the state into an era of "misrule and corruption".
Addressing a public meeting in Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas district, Singh alleged that the Trinamool Congress government had divided society on the basis of caste, religion, and sect, and said politics should instead be based on "justice, humanity, and equality".
"Mamata ji, I want to give you a suggestion. Do politics, but not the politics of appeasement. Politics should be based on satisfaction, not appeasement," he said.
"You have divided society on the basis of caste, religion, and sect. Politics should not be done on the basis of caste or religion. Politics should be based on justice and humanity, on justice and equality," the senior BJP leader said.
Stepping up the BJP's attack over the issue of illegal immigration, Singh claimed Banerjee was unwilling to stop infiltration because she viewed infiltrators as a political constituency.
"As far as infiltrators are concerned, I can say with confidence that Mamata ji does not want to stop them because she sees them as her vote bank," he said.
The Defence Minister said that during his tenure as Union Home Minister, the Centre had sought land from the state government for border fencing by the BSF, but the request had not been acted upon.
"When I was home minister, we had asked for land so that fencing could be done by the BSF on the border. But the land was not given. Only now has some land perhaps been given," he said.
In one of his sharpest attacks on the ruling party, Singh said if anyone asked him what TMC stood for, he would say it meant "Total Misrule and Corruption".
Claiming that Bengal had slipped behind other states, Singh alleged that incidents of loot, kidnapping, and murder had become routine under the present dispensation.
"Loot and murder are taking place continuously in West Bengal. Mamata ji, where do you want to take this state? Compared with other states of India, you have pushed Bengal backward," he said.
Referring to the gherao of judicial officers in Malda and the subsequent observations of courts, Singh claimed even judicial officers had not been spared.
"Even judicial magistrates were held hostage here. You will not find such a government anywhere in the history of India or the world. The Supreme Court itself said that this was a planned and deliberate action," he said.
Singh also sought to revive the controversy over remarks over TMC government not following protocol during President Droupadi Murmu’s visit to the state last month, alleging that the ruling party's mindset "insults tribals while glorifying infiltrators".
"Even the President of India, the highest constitutional authority, was not spared. She was not treated with the dignity she deserved. A TMC minister had once made an extremely derogatory and shameful remark about the President. I cannot even repeat those words," he said.
The BJP leader also took aim at Banerjee over her defeat in the Nandigram assembly seat in the 2021 polls, saying it had been a warning from the people of the state.
"In the last election, Mamata ji lost from her own (Nandigram) seat. The people of Bengal had given her a warning. Last time you lost your own seat. This time, TMC is going to be wiped out from all of Bengal," he said.
Contrasting the Centre's vision for the state with what he called the TMC government's failures, Singh said the Narendra Modi government wanted to bring industries, jobs, and investment to West Bengal.
"We want to bring industry to Bengal, increase people's incomes, and bring more investment. Not only should people from Bengal invest here, not only should people from India invest here, but people from all over the world should come and invest in West Bengal, so that our youth can get employment opportunities," he said.
