Debra, March 30 West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee raised issues of Bengali identity, the electoral roll revision process, and the TMC's national ambitions during her campaign, stating that after winning the upcoming elections, her party would work to "capture Delhi."
Addressing a rally in Debra, Paschim Medinipur, a politically significant area where the BJP made significant inroads in 2021 before the TMC regained ground in the Lok Sabha elections, Banerjee framed the election not just as a contest for power in Bengal, but as a fight against what she described as the BJP's attempt to control the state politically, culturally, and electorally.
"After winning in West Bengal, we will unite everyone across the country to capture Delhi," Mamata Banerjee said, emphasizing her effort to position herself as a prominent anti-BJP voice nationally while also addressing concerns at home.
At the core of Banerjee's accusations was the allegation that the Centre and the Election Commission were working together to weaken the state government and manipulate the electoral process.
"They have taken away all the power from me," she said, referring to the alleged actions of the Centre and the Election Commission.
Banerjee repeatedly accused the BJP of being "anti-Bengal" and sought to turn public dissatisfaction over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls into a political issue.
"You have made people stand in queues. You have humiliated them. The people will take revenge through the ballot box," she said, aiming to mobilize voters against the BJP.
Banerjee claimed that lakhs of genuine voters, particularly women and "Bengali-speaking people," had been removed from the voter list.
"Many names have been deleted. Please check online and apply. I will ask (Debra TMC nominee) Rajib Banerjee to look into it. We will provide legal support," she said.
"Even if 50 per cent of those names are restored, the credit goes to our legal battle. I myself went to the Supreme Court and fought," she added.
She also alleged that BJP leaders had spoken about the deletions even before the Election Commission.
By highlighting this issue, the TMC appeared to be attempting to energize its traditional minority and Bengali-speaking support base, while also appealing to women voters, a demographic that has consistently supported Banerjee.
"They are anti-women. Most of the deleted names are of mothers and sisters," she said, claiming that women faced difficulties during the revision process due to changes in surnames after marriage.
She also attempted to unite the TMC's social coalition across caste, religion, and community lines, at a time when the BJP is trying to expand its base among sections of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes in South Bengal.
"Just as everyone fights for our tribal candidates, we must fight for Hindu candidates, and where there are Muslim candidates, we must fight for them too. Because we are the ones who will form the government," she said.
This reflected the TMC's effort to counter the BJP's polarization strategy by positioning itself as the umbrella party for all communities.
The choice of Debra was politically significant. Located in Paschim Medinipur, a district where the BJP emerged as a formidable force in the last assembly election, the region has seen a fierce battle for tribal, rural, and lower-middle-class voters.
The TMC chief also attempted to turn the BJP's emphasis on food habits and cultural nationalism into an emotive election issue.
"Why are they so obsessed with Bengal's food? They tell people not to eat fish, not to eat meat, and not to eat eggs. What do they want people to eat?" she said.
This was aimed at reviving one of the TMC's familiar campaign themes that the BJP seeks to impose a north Indian, Hindi-Hindu cultural template on Bengal.
"If you go outside West Bengal and speak in Bengali, you may not be allowed to stay in a hotel. You may be attacked or even beaten to death. Wherever the BJP is in power, they do not allow fish to be eaten. Fish and meat shops are shut," she claimed.
The CM sharpened her attack on the saffron party over religion, accusing it of commercializing faith.
"They talk in the name of religion but mislead religion itself. They do not believe in any religion. We keep religion at home and respect it. They trade in religion, while we believe in humanity," she said.
She also accused the BJP of disrespecting Bengal's icons -- Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Raja Rammohan Roy, and Khudiram Bose.
"Vidyasagar's statue was broken during Amit Shah's rally (in 2019). They don’t respect icons of Bengal, and don’t know our culture and heritage. Where was the BJP during the freedom struggle? Did it even exist?" Banerjee asked.