The area in and around Bengal's Siliguri is of utmost importance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, invoking national security in the poll bound state today and blaming its ruling party for taking a soft line on secessionists.
On Sunday, speaking at a rally in north Bengal's Siliguri, PM Modi said the Trinamool had rewarded a "Tukde-tukde gang" which threatened to snap the northeat away from India.
Accusing the party of having an "ill-advised policy" to wards the security of the country, PM Modi said: "Our Siliguri is a major gateway for India's security as well. The Siliguri corridor is not just a word but it's the arm of Mother India. But you should remember friends, what TMC did for appeasement, to make their vote bank happy?"
"There's a 'tukde-tukde' gang (secessionists) in the country. This gang had given a threat to cut the Siliguri corridor. They had spoken about separating the North-East from the country. The TMC gave support to such people from the street to the Parliament," he added.
The Siliguri Corridor, informally dubbed the 'Chicken's Neck', connects mainland India to the Northeast. The strip is around 20-22 km wide at its narrowest point and sits close to Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and the China border.
The Prinme Minister, however, did not elaborate who the "Tukde tukde" gang in this case were. The BJP had initially accused Left-leaning students - especially those belonging to Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University - of being the "tukde tukde gang". The term lately became catch-all and was even applied to the Congress by certain leaders of the party.
Bengal minister and Trinamool candidate Bratya Basu dismissed the Prime Minister's comment. "They call everyone who are against BJP, tukre tukre gang'," he said.
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