West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi engaged in a verbal duel on Wednesday, as they accused each other of making false promises and lying to voters ahead of the Assembly elections in the state.
The day started with the prime minister addressing a rally in Bishnupur district, where he said that Banerjee should be prepared to face defeat. “Didi is talking about ‘duare sarkar’ [government at doorstep], but she will be shown the door on May 2,” Modi said, according to The Times of India.
The “duare sarkar” programme, launched by Banerjee’s government, provides delivery of specific schemes of the state government at the doorsteps of the people through outreach camps organised at the level of gram panchayat and municipal ward level.
Modi also took on Banerjee’s “outsider” jibe, and declared that if voted to power, the BJP will elect a “son of the soil” as the chief minister of West Bengal, reported PTI. He said that Bengal was the land of national icons like Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose, where no Indian was an outsider.
“Bengal brought together the people of India through Vande Mataram, and on that land, Mamata-didi is talking about ‘bohiragoto’ [outsider],” Modi added. “No Indian is an outsider here, they are children of Bharat Mata [Mother India],” he said.
The prime minister said that no matter how much Banerjee tried to insult the Bharatiya Janata Party by calling its members tourists or outsiders, she will not be able to stop his party from winning. “When the BJP forms government in Bengal, the chief minister will be a son of the soil,” Modi said at the rally amid loud cheers from his supporters.
Modi’s comments came at a time when the ruling Trinamool Congress has sparked off an “insider vs outsider” debate, with Banerjee asserting that she will not allow Bengal to be ruled by outsiders from Delhi or Gujarat, in a reference to the saffron party and the prime minister. The Trinamool Congress has even launched the “Bangla Nijer Meyeke Chaye [Bengal wants its own daughter]” campaign.
At his rally, Modi also accused Banerjee of insulting the people of Nandigram, from where she is contesting the election. She is pitted against her former aide and now a BJP leader, Suvendu Adhikari, from the constituency.
“You are maligning Nandigram and its people before the entire country,” the prime minister alleged. “This is the same Nandigram that gave you so much. The people of Nandigram will not forgive you and will give you a befitting reply.”
The prime minister reiterated accusations that the TMC chief had stalled development in the state. “The relief for [Cyclone] Amphan was looted through the ‘bhaipo [nephew] window’,” he alleged, referring to Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee.
Modi said that if voted to power, his party would make every scheme in the state “scam-free and bring in transparency”.
‘Modi is a liar’
Soon enough, Banerjee hit back at Modi as she called him a liar, and accused him of unleashing goons in the state, reported The Times of India.
“I respect prime minister’s chair but sorry to say, Narendra Modi is a big liar,” she said at a rally in Bishnupur. “He only speaks lies. Who are the goons? Today, due to BJP’s torture, IPS officers in Uttar Pradesh are leaving their jobs.”
She added that Modi “only talks big and makes false promises like crediting Rs 15 lakh to everyone’s bank accounts” while LPG prices are touching the roof, according to The Indian Express.
Further, taking on Modi’s outsider remark, Banerjee said, “We don’t label people of other states staying in Bengal for ages as outsiders. But pan masala-chewing and tilak-sporting people sent from states like Uttar Pradesh before the elections to foment trouble are outsider goons for us.”
The chief minister also criticised Modi administration’s handling of the farmer protests against the new agricultural laws. The Trinamool Congress chief said that farmers have been on the roads for months. “This is due to the three syndicates of PM Modi, Amit Shah and [industrialist] Adani,” Banerjee added. “Adani will loot all money and products, only Modi, Shah and Adani will get to eat. The rest of the people can only shed tears.”
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!