Trinamool Congress lawmaker Abhishek Banerjee attacks BJP on slogans, unemployment, farmers's suicide.
The Television Rating Point or TRP of "Jai Shri Ram" slogan has gone down and TRP of "Jai Maa Kaali" slogan is rising due to Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, said TMC lawmaker Abhishek Banerjee in a scathing attack at the BJP. TRP refers to Television Rating Point and is used to identify which programmes are viewed the most. In this case, it refers to the popularity of the slogan.
"People told me that Dilip Ghosh (state BJP president) has asked to raise slogans of Jai Maa Kali along with Jai Shri Ram. I told them that Mamata Banerjee was there so that is why Ram's TRP has suddenly gone down and Maa Kali's TRP is going up," he said at a rally in Kolkata on Tuesday.
Targeting the BJP-led Centre over unemployment and farmers' suicides, the TMC lawmaker, who is also Mamata Banerjee's nephew, said, "When joblessness is rising and farmers are committing suicides every day, Prime Minister replies Jai Shri Ram. Our slogan is Jai Hind, Jai Bangla, Vande Mataram."
The political temperature in Bengal continues to rise ever since the BJP made deep inroads in the state after winning 18 seats and limiting TMC to 22 seats in the recently-concluded general elections.
Mamata Banerjee on Sunday had criticised the BJP and said that its leaders are using Jai Shri Ram as their party slogan in a "misconceived manner". She accused the party of mixing religion with politics.
Last month, the Bengal Chief Minister had lost her cool when a group of men chanted Jai Shri Ram as her convoy passed through in North 24 Parganas district.
"These are all outsiders and BJP people, they are criminals and were abusing me. They are not from Bengal. We will take action," she had said after getting off from her car.
Recently, newly-elected BJP lawmaker Arjun Singh had said that his party will send 10 lakh postcards with Jai Shri Ram written on them to Mamata Banerjee and challenged her to arrest all the 10 lakh senders.