Kolkata: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday sharpened the BJP’s campaign pitch for the West Bengal Assembly polls by publishing a ‘charge sheet’ against the TMC government and framing the election as a battle not merely for the state, but for the country’s security.
Launching a broadside at the ruling TMC in Kolkata, Shah alleged that during its 15-year rule, the state had become the country’s “principal corridor for infiltration, appeasement politics and border insecurity”.
“The Bengal election is important not only for the state but for the entire country. The security of the country is, in a way, linked to the Bengal election,” Shah said.
Arguing that infiltration routes through Assam had been “shut” after the BJP came to power there, Shah claimed West Bengal was now “the only remaining route” for infiltration. “West Bengal is the only state from where infiltrators are entering the country and creating disturbances,” he said.
The BJP leader repeatedly linked the issue to what he described as the TMC’s “appeasement and vote-bank politics,” accusing the state government of obstructing efforts to strengthen border management.
Shah alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government had not provided land for border fencing despite repeated requests from the Centre and added that the refusal was “politically motivated.”
“The TMC government has not provided land for border fencing as they want to create a vote-bank of infiltrators,” Shah alleged.
Shah asserted that the upcoming elections in Bengal will be a choice between “fear and trust”, accusing Banerjee of fostering a politics of lies, violence, and corruption over the past 15 years.
“In the coming elections, Bengal has to choose between fear and trust. For the last 15 years, politics of fear and corruption has been going on. Mamata Banerjee has created a new way of politics by using lies and violence to move her politics forward,” Shah claimed.
“The basis of TMC coming to power is lies, fear and violence. But since 2011, BJP has been fighting against this, and I believe that this time BJP will form the government in Bengal,” he said.
“In today’s press conference, we have come with a chargesheet against the 15 years of rule by the TMC government. This chargesheet is filed against the Mamata Banerjee government on behalf of the people of Bengal, which the BJP is voicing. In a way, the people of Bengal have to decide in the coming elections whether to choose fear or to choose trust,” he added.
Shah also criticized the TMC for failing to deliver on its promise of a “Sonar Bangla,” turning Bengal into a hub for criminal syndicates and stifling industrial growth, which he described as a “graveyard for industry.”
Elections in Bengal will be held across two phases, on April 23 and April 29, with counting of votes for both phases scheduled for May 4.
