- The people of Bengal, especially women, voted against Mamata Banerjee's misgovernance and corruption
- Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan cited mishandling of RG Kar rape-murder and job losses as key issues
- He said women turned against Trinamool due to atrocities and arrogance in handling incidents like Sandeshkhali
The people of Bengal -- especially the women -- have defeated Mamata Banerjee because of her misgovernance, the handling of atrocities like the RG Kar rape-murder, corruption and loss of jobs of teachers, Union minister and Bengal election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan said today as the BJP crossed the majority mark in Bengal, lifting their long-coveted prize.
"The people of Bengal voted against the misgovernance of the Trinamool Congress. They voted against the special affection shown toward infiltrators. They voted because the youth lacked jobs," Pradhan told NDTV's CEO and Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal in an exclusive interview.
"Most notably, the women of Bengal voted against the countless stories of atrocities-whether in Sandeshkhali or RG Kar. They reacted to the arrogance with which the Trinamool leadership handled those incidents," he added.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) speaks to NDTV on trends showing BJP leading in West Bengal #ResultsWithNDTV pic.twitter.com/F0yArosB4V
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Pradhan said as someone connected to the education department, "I saw how teaching jobs were sold in Bengal".
"Mountains of cash were recovered from ministers' homes. The people of Bengal gave a well-thought-out vote against all these injustices. All credit goes to them. Bengal is moving toward a massive transformation," he added.
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The women voters have long been the biggest supporters of Mamata Banerjee, lauding her multiple welfare schemes like Lakshmir Bhandar, that gave them a taste of independence. Following the RG Kar rape-murder case, and Banerjee's controversial statements, the tide had turned. WOmen turned up in droves in Kolkata and elsewhere for "Reclaim the night" marches, where the mood was of condemnation of the state government.
From the ground, others, while approving of the state's welfare schemes, said they were educated and needed jobs, not dole from the state.
Trinamool also lost face massively in 2022, when cash to the tgune of Rs 50 crore and gold were seized from two apartments in Kolkata belonging to Arpita Mukherjee, a close aide of former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee.
The finding came during a raid of the Enforcement Directorate linked to a school recruitment scam.
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