On Amit Shah's 'Chargesheet' Against Party, Trinamool's "Trial Over" Retort

Launching a broadside against the Mamata Banerjee-led government in West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has released a "chargesheet" against it and said next month's Assembly elections in the state are about choosing between fear and trust.

Addressing a press conference on Saturday, the BJP leader said the Trinamool Congress chief relies on "lies, intimidation and violence" to further her political agenda. He emphasised that Bengal, being a border state, is crucial for the country's security, which is being threatened by "infiltrators". 

Taking a dig at Banerjee for campaigning during the 2021 Assembly elections with her leg bandaged, Shah said in Hindi, "She has consistently played the 'victim card'. Sometimes she gets her leg fractured or has her head bandaged or falls ill. At other times, she plays the victim before the Election Commission only to hurl invectives at it later. I am here to tell you (Banerjee) that the people of Bengal have understood your brand of politics very well."

On the Special Intensive Revision of voter lists, the Home minister said the exercise is being carried out in several states but only Bengal has seen irregularities on a large scale. 

"This is why the Supreme Court was compelled to appoint judicial officers. I want to ask the people of Bengal: Should the infiltrators who have been harboured here and given voting rights be allowed to have a say in determining the future of the state? The BJP wants to throw out infiltrators from the country... but the Trinamool Congress has sought to cultivate them as a vote bank," Shah alleged. 

Infiltrators, he said, not only threaten national security, but also eat into the wages of poor labourers and snatch employment opportunities from the youth.

The BJP, Shah said, has ensured that infiltration into the country from Assam has nearly ceased since it formed a government in the state and alleged Bengal is the only route through which infiltrators enter now. 

"Therefore, the Bengal election is significant not only for the state but also the country, particularly from the perspective of national security... Due to the Trinamool's politics of infiltration, the security of the Siliguri Corridor has been severely compromised," the minister said. 

"The people of Bengal have to decide whether they want to choose the politics of fear that the Trinamool Congress represents or the trust that the BJP stands for," he added.

Trinamool's Counter

Hitting back at the Home minister, Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh said a chargesheet had been prepared by the people of Bengal against the BJP, predicting that the party will face a crushing defeat.

"The trial is over and the verdict is set to be issued. Just wait for May 4," he said. 

West Bengal will vote in two phases on April 23 and 29, and counting will be held on May 4.