Amit Shah vows to tackle infiltration in West Bengal if the BJP wins the upcoming elections, accusing Mamata Banerjee of prioritising vote-bank politics over national security.
Key Points
- Amit Shah claims the BJP will form the government in West Bengal and address the issue of infiltration.
- Shah accuses Mamata Banerjee of allowing infiltrators into West Bengal for vote-bank politics.
- Shah promises to secure the India-Bangladesh border by constructing fences within 45 days of the BJP coming to power.
- Shah asserts that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is crucial for removing illegal immigrants from voter lists.
- Shah pledges to create employment opportunities by establishing four large industrial towns in West Bengal.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday asserted the BJP will definitely form a government in West Bengal, and said the SIR of electoral rolls is a "major issue" in the assembly polls, as people have resolved to throw infiltrators out of the state.
Speaking to PTI Videos during a roadshow in Paschim Bardhaman district's Durgapur, Shah said the responsibility for the political violence in Bengal lies only with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, who is the TMC's general secretary.
"SIR is indeed a major issue for West Bengal. Should there be foreign voters in this country? India is not a 'dharamsala' (charitable home). Infiltrators must be thrown out. No matter what Mamata Banerjee says, people have resolved to remove infiltrators from the state this time," he said.
The Union home minister said the BJP would definitely form a government in Bengal after the polls.
"This is the only region in the country where political violence is most commonplace, and the responsibility for that lies only with Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee," Shah said.
Pointing to the huge crowd lined up on the streets during the roadshow, he said, "Look at the huge attendance of people and their disgust (with the ruling dispensation). TMC goons will not even be able to leave their homes on the days of polls this time around."
Addressing people during the roadshow, Shah said "no TMC goon" will be able to stand in the way of people exercising their franchise, and maintained that the Election Commission has made foolproof arrangements to ensure free and fair polls.
Accusing CM Banerjee of having ruined Bengal during her 15-year rule, he claimed that infiltrators were able to enter the state from Bangladesh without any hindrance, while industries were fleeing.
The Union home minister said infiltration was plugged in Assam and Tripura after the BJP took over the reins of those states. Infiltration also does not happen in the BJP-ruled states of Rajasthan and Gujarat, which share borders with Pakistan, he pointed out.
"Didi (Banerjee) allows infiltrators to enter the state for her vote-bank politics," he said in a short address to people from an open-hooded saffron-coloured vehicle after the roadshow.
Colourful standees, banners, party flags and balloons adorned the roadshow with Shah waving at people lined up along the route.
He told the crowd that the Centre has been asking the Mamata Banerjee government for the past seven years to allot land for setting up fences along the India-Bangladesh border, but the chief minister has not done that.
Shah assured the gathering that 600 acres of land would be provided to the BSF for constructing fences within 45 days of the BJP coming to power in West Bengal.
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is being carried out to delete the names of illegal immigrants who had been enrolled in the voters' list fraudulently, and Mamata Banerjee is opposed to it, he said.
Shah asserted that only the Narendra Modi-led BJP government can ensure a corruption-free and fear-free Bengal.
Claiming that scores of youths were jobless in the state, the former BJP chief said, "We will set up four large industrial towns in the state to facilitate employment opportunities."
Shah's Campaign Trail
Earlier in the day, Shah held three public meetings, two in Birbhum district and the third in the Raniganj area of Purba Bardhaman, where he asserted that the people of Bengal will reply to bombs with votes in their bid to form a 'double-engine' government of the BJP.
He has been paying regular visits to the state over the last few weeks and has held multiple rallies across the state in the run-up to the April 23 polls, sharpening the infiltration issue in the state as the BJP's one of the most prominent poll planks.
West Bengal will go to the polls in two phases -- on April 23 and 29. The counting of votes will be held on May 4.
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