Mamata Banerjee urged people to work together for peace and prosperity (File)
In a veiled attack on the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said "politics of divide and rule" would do no good to the country, which is currently facing an economic slowdown.
Speaking at a programme in Kolkata, the chief minister asserted that it was time to address the economic woes in the country instead of harping on "Hindu-Muslim" issues.
"Unemployment and poverty have reached sky-high levels. At a time like this, I don't know if harping on Hindu-Muslim issues will yield any positive result," she said.
The chief minister urged people to work together for peace and prosperity.
"Nobody knows what will happen to the banks tomorrow. There is uncertainty everywhere. This never happened before. Let us work together for peace, prosperity and unity. Dwelling on religious matters will not bring the desired outcome," she insisted.
The TMC chief also claimed that industrialists in the country feel intimidated by central agencies - the CBI, the IT department and the ED.
"Many of them have left Indian shores due to this (intimidation). Rahul Bajaj had the guts to speak out. But I feel he has been put under scanner since then," she said.
Veteran industrialist Rahul Bajaj recently said that India Inc was afraid of criticising the Centre's policies. He found support in Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar Shaw who said the government treated India Inc as "pariahs" and doesn't want to hear any criticism of the economy.
Slamming West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar over alleged delay in clearing bills, she said there was a "parallel administration running in the state".
"I am sorry to say this... The House got adjourned as bills were not signed. We are fighting, and we will fight this out," she added.