"Bengal Has Seen Poriborton Today": PM Modi On BJP's Big Victory

The winds of change in Bengal that have swept away the Mamata Banerjee government and embraced the BJP after years of diffidence, was saluted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi this evening. On the occasion, he also made two important promises -- strong action against infiltrators and immediate activation of the Central health scheme in the state, over which there have been years of conflict with the state's Trinamool Congress government. 

There were also a couple of predictions - the "fall" of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party that had blocked the women's quota bill. The two parties, he said, will have to face the "wrath of women". 

In an address to BJP workers at the BJP headquarters this evening, PM Modi said, "A new chapter has been added to the destiny of Bengal from today. Bengal has been freed from fear and is now filled with the confidence of development. Banglay poriborton hoyeche (Change has arrived in Bengal)".

"I dedicate the credit for the Bharatiya Janata Party's success in Bengal - this victory - to the people of Bengal... A new sunrise has dawned on the sacred land of Bengal," he added.

It was also a matter of pride for the BJP that Anga (modern-day Bihar), Banga (Bengal) and Kalinga (Odisha) -- the three pillars of ancient India -- have chosen the NDA to help take the country forward again, PM Modi said.

"We have set out with the objective of a Developed India. In the fulfilment of the resolution for a Developed India, the rise of the East (Purvoday) holds immense significance," he added. 

The Prime Minister also took a dig at the Opposition parties on the occasion, indicating that while women - angry over the defeat of the quota bill in parliament - had exacted revenge over Banerjee in Bengal, a similar fate awaits all the parties that blocked the bill in parliament last month. 

"I had said a few days ago that parties opposing reservation for women will have to face the wrath of women. The sisters and daughters of our nation have now punished the Congress, Trinamool, and the DMK," he said.

"In Kerala, the Congress has certainly benefited from the ten years of misrule by the Left, but I am confident that the sisters of Kerala will also teach the party a lesson in the next elections. Similarly, the Samajwadi Party will also have to endure the outrage of the women of Uttar Pradesh... The anti-women Samajwadi Party will never be able to wash away its sins, no matter what it tries," PM Modi said. 

There was also a word on the fate of the Left, which for the first time since 1977, finds itself without a state to rule following its defeat in Kerala. This, PM Modi said, is a "major shift in Indian politics".

"This is not merely a political shift. It is a shift in mindset. Today's India seeks opportunity. It seeks development. It seeks trust, progress, and stability. Today's India demands a brand of politics that moves the nation forward," he said, indicating that the country's infatuation with the Leftist ideology is finally over. 

The BJP, which has sought to wrest Bengal for long, is now set to succeed, leading in 200-plus seats in the state. The party has also won a third straight term in Assam and another one in Puducherry.