This Article is From Nov 24, 2014

'Here I Am, Come and Arrest Me,' Mamata Banerjee Tells BJP

'Here I Am, Come and Arrest Me,' Mamata Banerjee Tells BJP

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the Trinamool protest rally in Kolkata.

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Monday took to the streets of Kolkata to attack the BJP, calling its leaders 'daanga gurus' (riot leaders) and threatening to storm Delhi with her supporters.

The Chief Minister's march comes two days after she sparked a war of words by claiming the BJP-led Centre had "stage-managed" the blast in Burdwan on October 2, in which two people were killed, and arrested Trinamool Member of Parliament Srinjoy Bose in connection with the Saradha scam because she attended an event to mark the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of Jawaharlal Nehru in Delhi.

Senior BJP leader and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has reacted to her comments in his blog, saying they were "irresponsible and anti-national".

The Trinamool Congress had claimed the Burdwan blast was planned by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

"All the facts will be made public in 48 hours," said party spokesperson Mr Derek O'Brien.

Today, Ms Banerjee accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of taking supporters along during his foreign visits for photo opportunities and threatened to follow in his footsteps.

"Should I take people and go to Delhi? You are taking people to America and taking selfies. We don't need to take selfies. We will take people and go to Delhi and sit down on the streets. You face the consequence, you face the music," she said.

The rally comprising thousands of Trinamool supporters, all backing their Didi in her attack on the BJP, choked central Kolkata today.

Many wore a placard with a slogan Ms Banerjee had coined: "We are all thieves, come arrest us".

In fact, Ms Banerjee offered herself up for arrest too.

"Everyone is a thief?  Come and arrest me. Here I am, waiting on the street," she said, standing on a stage at Dharmatala in Kolkata, at the end of the rally.

The BJP has hit back; "don't worry about black money, worry about Saradha money", party leaders have said.

More fireworks between the two parties are expected in the coming days.
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